Report says Inland Empire warehouse, transportation jobs down over last six months

Despite the massive amount of sprawling warehouses located throughout the Inland Empire, a new report shows that there have been six straight months of job losses in the transportation and warehousing industry. 

IEGO, or Inland Economic Growth and Development, is an organization "dedicated to fostering economic growth, driving innovation, and promoting opportunity." Their most recent analysis shows that even with the area being labeled as a national hub for the warehousing industry, job losses have continued to climb. 

Economists say that job losses at this time of the year aren't out of the ordinary for the industry. 

"The answer is November and December," said Chris Thornberg, an economist for economics research firm Beacon. "All the warehouses hire all sorts of people for a short run end of the year, and then when the beginning of the year starts, those temporary jobs go away."

Thornberg says that the number of warehousing jobs in July of this year are roughly the same as those in the previous two years, and no cause for serious concern. 

What could be concerning, however, is a lack of growth in warehousing over the last three years. He says that that issue doesn't lie within tariffs or robots, but rather the coronavirus pandemic. 

"The pandemic hit, the world shut down and we were getting everything delivered," he said. "There was an enormous surge in demand for warehouse space and warehouse workers."

Big-box distribution centers booked 33% in the Inland Empire, and when people returned to the way of life prior to 2020, things slowed down but didn't stop, and the industry still hasn't caught up. Current occupancy rate for warehouses is just 88%, according to the report.

Thornberg says that vacancy rates should drop in the next few years.