Unemployment in the Sunshine State has dropped to a historic low as job creation soars.
Florida’s unemployment rate dropped to 2.7 percent in the month of July — the lowest since the start of the Chinese coronavirus pandemic in February 2020. According to the governor’s office, the state has only reached such a low three times “since Florida began recording unemployment data in 1976.”
The current rate reflects a 0.1 percent drop from June’s rate. But overall, Florida’s unemployment rate is 0.8 percent lower than the national unemployment rate, and has been since December 2020. The growth of Florida’s labor force also outpaced the country’s, growing by 0.2 percent over the last month, compared to the 0.1 percent loss nationally.
“Florida’s private sector employment grew by an outstanding 70,000 in July 2022, doubling the nation’s job growth rate over the same period,” the governor’s office said:
Before July 2022, Florida has reached this level of over-the-month job creation only 6 other times since data began to be collected in 1990. Florida’s labor force also grew over the month in July 2022, while the national labor force shrank for the second consecutive month. July 2022 employment data demonstrates that Floridians are continuing to enter the workforce and businesses are continuing to create jobs.
“Between July 2021 and July 2022, Florida’s labor force grew by 291,000, or 2.8 percent. This was faster than the national labor force growth rate of 1.6 percent over the year,” the governor’s office detailed.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) attributed Florida’s figures to the success of “freedom-first policies.”
“July’s job numbers represent one of the largest month’s job gains over the past generation, and Florida continues to outpace the nation in labor force growth,” DeSantis said.