Florida was among the hardest hit of the states during the recession but is now a leader among the states in job gains, unemployment rate decline, and growth in job demand.

Florida’s long-term unemployment trend has been steadily decreasing over time. Florida’s unemployment rate has declined or held steady over the month for 43 of the last 45 months. Minor fluctuations month-to-month are to be expected as people move in and out of the labor force for a variety of reasons. Similarly, the state’s private-sector job trends have been steadily on the rise for over three years, showing that Florida’s businesses are responding to the state’s improving economic climate. Florida’s unemployment rate has been below or equal to the national unemployment rate for 13 consecutive months. The national unemployment rate for May 2014 was also 6.3 percent.

Since December 2010, Florida’s unemployment rate has dropped 4.8 percentage points, from the high rate of 11.1 percent down now to 6.3 percent. During this time period, the state has added more than 580,000 private-sector jobs. The long-term positive trends in the unemployment rate and job counts are among the most important economic indicators to consider when analyzing the health of Florida’s economic recovery. Florida’s job count in May 2014 was 7,761,900, a decrease of 17,900 jobs over the month. For April 2014, Florida’s job count was revised up, showing that the economy added 34,900 private sector jobs in that month. Over the year, Florida added 218,800 jobs, an increase of 2.9 percent compared to May 2013.

For the fifth month in a row, Florida’s labor force has increased over the month.  On an annual basis, Florida’s labor force has increased for 51 consecutive months. This economic indicator can be a sign of optimism as more people are entering the labor force with confidence in their prospects for finding employment. The labor force is defined as the sum of employment plus unemployment (those with a job and those without a job but actively seeking work). Florida’s labor force participation rate, which is labor force as a proportion of the total civilian noninstitutional population, was 60.8 percent in May 2014, up 0.4 percentage point from the May 2013 participation rate of 60.4 percent. The labor force participation rate has now increased for five consecutive months.

Other tracked economic indicators include job demand, which is online job vacancies posted by employers. During the recession, job vacancies bottomed out in April 2009 and have increased by 101,338 openings (+66.3 percent) since then. In May, there were more than 254,000 job vacancies, a gain of almost 3,000 openings over the year 

Another very important economic indicator to consider is gross domestic product.  Real GDP is defined as the value of all final goods and services produced in a time period in a given economy (using constant, inflation-adjusted dollars).  Real GDP is a standard measure of an economy’s output.  For states, this number is not reported as frequently or as timely as the unemployment rate, job count, and job demand.  Last week, the federal government released the 2013 GDP figures for the states, and Florida’s position is worth noting. Florida’s overall real GDP was $750.5 billion, which was the fourth highest real GDP behind California, Texas, and New York. In terms of real GDP growth rate, Florida grew at 2.2 percent, which among the ten largest states was the third highest rate.  It was also above the national growth rate for 2013, which was 1.8 percent. In terms of trends, from 2008 through 2011, real GDP declined, including a drop of over 6 percent in 2009.  For a second year in a row, GDP growth in Florida exceeded 2 percent, more good news for the state economy.

The overall trend in Florida’s job market has been very positive since December 2010, with Florida’s statewide unemployment rate dropping and jobs gaining every month on an annual basis during this time period.  Florida’s job growth rate over the year has exceeded that of the nation since April 2012, demonstrating that Florida’s improved economic climate continues to outpace the national recovery.

Contact: DEO Communications, 850.245.7110, media@deo.myflorida.com

###