Florida’s job market is recovering significantly faster than the national average, according to new figures.
The United States economy gained 194,000 jobs in the month of September, severely missing economists’ expectations. However, Florida alone gained 84,500 jobs during the same period — leading the nation in terms of the largest percentage increase.
According to a statement from the office of Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL):
Florida’s economy accelerated in September 2021, growing at three times the rate over the month compared to the nation. Overall for the month, Florida gained 84,500 total jobs, including nearly 73,000 private-sector jobs. This month marks 17 months of private-sector job growth, increasing by 5.6% over the year. Florida has experienced this magnitude of monthly private sector job growth on only four other occasions in the past 30 years.
In addition, Florida has experienced 11 consecutive months of labor force increases, adding 50,000 workers over the month. Florida’s labor force growth represents a 5.4% increase over-the-year, which is significantly higher than the national rate of 0.8%. In total, Florida has gained more than one million jobs since April 2020.
“We are outpacing the nation in job growth and job opportunities because businesses know that Florida will stand up for them,” said DeSantis in the release. “Despite tremendous national headwinds and economic uncertainty, Florida has reached a level of job growth only seen on four other occasions in the past 30 years. We will continue to work hard to keep Florida open, free and built for opportunity.”
DeSantis was one of the first governors to pull his state from enhanced federal unemployment checks funded by President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan. A recent report from the Foundation for Government Accountability — a Florida-based think tank seeking to reform welfare initiatives — confirms that DeSantis’ decision to end the handouts paid significant dividends for the state’s job market.
“From late May — when Gov. DeSantis announced he was ending the $300 weekly unemployment bonus — through late August, Florida employers hired nearly 1.3 million new workers,” the report says. “Nearly 400,000 of these new hires were recorded in the first three weeks following the unemployment bonus’s elimination. As the bonus ended, employers’ hiring rates spiked, allowing them to fill needed open jobs. For the first time in months, the number of unfilled positions in Florida began to decline in August, as more Floridians left unemployment and returned to work.”
More recently, DeSantis announced plans to call a special legislative session to address COVID-19 vaccine mandates — an attempt to undermine the Biden administration’s pending vaccine requirements for private employers.