Looking for work? You might try knocking on a hotel manager or travel agent’s door.

A report Wednesday from the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. forecasts 1.3 job growth in the Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys during 2012, followed by 1.6-percent growth next year. Much of the growth will come in the leisure and hospitality and retail trade subsectors, it says.

If the forecasted growth materializes, it will represent a significant improvement over the 2010-2011 period, when only 100 net jobs were added in the SCV-Antelope Valley region – a 0.1-percent growth rate. Increased hiring in private education, retail trade and wholesale trade was offset by losses in construction and business and professional service throughout the region.

The annual Mid-Year Economic Forecast from LAEDC’s Kyser Center for Economic Research also found that hotel occupancy in Santa Clarita alone has risen to 73.4 percent as of May 2012 from 71.1 percent a year earlier. Also, “office vacancy rates and industrial vacancy rates have improved early this year,” it said.

Not limited to the North County, the full report analyzes the national, state, and regional economies. Its key findings are:

The U.S. Economy

* Slow growth, gradual improvement in labor market, and low inflation threat.

* Consumer sector is healing, which is good news for overall economy.

* Risks: uncertainty regarding the European situation, global economic slowdown, and the Federal “fiscal cliff.”

The California Economy

* State improvement tied to national and global economies.

* Private sector job gains, unemployment rate down slowly but steadily, housing on the mend.

* Risks: short-run/long-run challenges stemming from problems with state and local government finances.

The Southern California Economy

* Progress in regional economy, but unevenly across counties and industries.

* Orange County and Inland Empire (Riverside-San Bernardino) leading region in labor market gains.

* Private sector recovery continues despite state/local fiscal problems and associated government job losses.