Calif. unemployment hits record high

SAN DIEGO, April 16 (UPI) -- While U.S. unemployment numbers remained mostly unchanged for March, there was bad news for California, where unemployment rose to 12.6 percent, analysts said.

California's record rate was well above the national number of 9.7 percent for March reported by the Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics, The Sand Diego Union-Tribune reported Friday.

With 458,600 fewer people employed over the last year, California was tied for third with Rhode Island behind Michigan and Nevada for the worst jobless rates in the country, the newspaper said.

The national rate of 9.7 percent held steady for the third straight month, up from 8.6 percent in March 2000, the Union-Tribune reported.