California's unemployment rate jumped to 9.3 percent in December last year, up from 8.4 percent in November, it was announced on Friday.
The December unemployment rate was the highest in 15 years, highlighting the severity of the economic slowdown, the California Employment Development Department (EDD) said.
In the Los Angeles County, the jobless rate was 9.5 percent.
The department said the rising unemployment rates were due to lackluster holiday sales, continued home value declines and a heightened tempo of layoffs at companies across all sectors of the economy.
California, the most populous state in the nation, is heading into a second year of recession. The last time the state jobless number hit 9.3 percent was January 1994.
Nationwide, the unemployment rate was 7.2 percent in December, compared with 6.7 percent in the previous month, said the department.