TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA — On Friday, Governor Ron DeSantis announced the state’s unemployment rate declined to 2.7 percent in July. The figure is tied for the lowest ever since Florida began recording unemployment data in 1976. It is also the lowest since February 2020, before various COVID responses forced many out of work.
July represents the 20th consecutive month that Florida’s statewide unemployment rate has now been lower than the national rate. Additionally, Florida’s private sector employment grew by 70,000 last month, doubling the nation’s job growth rate over the same period. The state has reached that level of growth just six times in the last 32 years, since it began collecting data for over-the-month job creation in 1990.
DESANTIS’ RESPONSE
The governor cited the state’s commitment to “freedom first” policies as a primary cause of these important economic achievements. The administration’s unwillingness to maintain heavy COVID restrictions allowed many businesses to remain open in 2020 and 2021.
“Florida continues to outperform the nation because freedom first policies work,” DeSantis stated in a press release. “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.”
EXTERNAL VALIDATION
Recent third-party analysis reinforces the state’s own statistical reporting. In July, MoneyGeek.com ranked five Florida cities in the top 25 for job growth nationwide, including three of the top five and four of the top 10. North Port earned the top spot in the rankings, Jacksonville ranked third, Orlando ranked fourth, Tampa ranked ninth and Miami ranked 22nd. The site scored Orlando as the best city in America for job growth and North Port as the best for wage growth. North Port also captured the fifth lowest unemployment rate at 2.1 percent.
Last week, WalletHub ranked Florida as the nation’s seventh best state to live in, boosted by its sixth best economy. The state also saw a 27% increase in new business applications last year, more than double that of New York, according to the New York Post.
ADDITIONAL DATA
Total private employment in Florida grew by 5.5 percent over the year, compared to the national rate of 4.8 percent. Dating back to May 2020, employers across Florida have added jobs for 27 consecutive months. Meanwhile, the state’s private sector over-the-year job growth rate has exceeded the national rate for 16 straight months.
Industries that saw the most jobs growth in July were Leisure and Hospitality, Professional and Business Services, and Education and Health Services.
