Florida Construction News staff writer
Even with impacts from Hurricane Ian in Southwest Florida, the state’s labor force grew by 36,000 and the private sector added 35,000 jobs in October – the 30th consecutive month of job growth.
The construction sector reported 2,900 fewer jobs last month (-0.5%), but a 3.7% increase year-over-year.
In contrast, the national labor force shrank last month, and Florida’s private sector employment growth was double the national growth rate – up 5.6 percent over the year in October 2022 (+447,800 jobs), compared to the national growth rate of 4.0 percent.
Florida’s unemployment rate increased by 0.2 percentage points to 2.7 percent, which is still historically low, and remains a full point below the nation’s 3.7 percent mark.
“Florida’s economic resiliency is unmatched in the country – no other state could withstand the direct impact of a Category 4 hurricane and continue to grow jobs in the same month,” Gov. Ron DeSantis said in a statement. “We have made record investments in our infrastructure and workforce while building a record budget surplus and providing record tax reduction for Floridians.”
Much of the increase in the unemployment rate is due to increased unemployment in Southwest Florida following Hurricane Ian. The unemployment rate in the Fort Myers area was 3.9 percent during the month, up 0.5 points.
Florida’s statewide unemployment rate has been lower than the national rate for 23 consecutive months since December 2020.
The leisure and hospitality sector gained the most jobs among all major industries, adding 14,100 jobs (+1.1 percent) over the month, followed by education and health services, adding 8,200 jobs (+0.6 percent), and trade, transportation, and utilities, adding 8,200 jobs (+0.4 percent).
To view the October 2022 jobs reports by region, please see below:
