Hurricane Ian devastated Southwest Florida, but the state’s labor force stayed strong, Gov. Ron DeSantis reported on Nov. 18
During October, while the national labor force shrank, Florida’s labor force increased by 36,000, and its private sector added 35,000 jobs.
This sets a record of 30 straight months that jobs were created throughout the state, while private sector job growth has exceeded the national pace for the past 19 consecutive months, Dane Eagle, Secretary for the Department of Economic Opportunity, reported.
“More Floridians enter the workforce each month because they are confident in the opportunities available to them under Governor DeSantis’ consistent leadership,” Eagle said in a written statement. “DEO is proud to support the Governor’s mission through workforce education and development opportunities that help Floridians realize their potential and support our state’s major industries.”
On Sept. 28, Hurricane Ian roared ashore in coastal Charlotte and Lee counties before moving across the state. Charlotte, Lee, Sarasota, and Collier counties reported increases in unemployment claims, with Lee County reporting its jobless rate rose from 2.6 percent in September to 3.9 percent in October; in the same time frame, Charlotte County went from 3 percent to 4 percent.
During a conference call with reporters on Nov. 18, the Chief of Workforce Statistics and Economic Research at the DEO said the hurricane could account for part of the rate increase but said the jobs numbers in the hardest hit areas of Southwest Florida are “relatively small compared to the entire state.”
“Florida has really, really strong labor force growth that has been very consistent since the beginning of 2021,” Heckman told reporters during the conference call.
The state’s unemployment rate increased from 2.5 percent in September to 2.7 percent in October. But even with the 0.2 percent increase, the governor remained optimistic.
“Florida’s economic resiliency is unmatched in the country,” DeSantis said in a prepared statement. “No other state could withstand the direct impact of a Category 4 hurricane and continue to grow jobs in the same month.”
The report released on Nov. 18 estimated that 285,000 Floridians qualified as unemployed during the month of October, an increase of 19,000 from September.
The U.S. Department of Labor reported an increase in unemployment in 24 states, including Florida, while Pennsylvania was the only state to report a decrease between September and October.
However, national unemployment hovers around 3.7 percent. There were 261,000 U.S. jobs added during the month of October.
