Orlando’s unemployment rate reaches new post-pandemic low

Orlando’s unemployment rate reaches new post-pandemic low

2022-08-24T17:01:34-04:00August 24th, 2022|Economy, Orlando|

Writer: Ryan Gandolfo

2 min read August 2022 — The latest figures released by the state of Florida show the Orlando area unemployment rate trending downard, reaching pre-pandemic levels.

According to a press release by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity last Friday, the Orlando area unemployment rate fell to 3% in July, the lowest level since 2.5% in February 2020, and the statewide unemployment rate dipped to 2.7%.

“July is one of the best months Florida has seen for job creation, representing an achievement the state has only reached seven times in its history,” said DEO Secretary Dane Eagle in a statement released on the governor’s official website.

The statewide report added that Orlando’s private sector employment increased by 5.5%, signaling the third-highest number of private sector jobs gained over the past year in July 2022 among all metro areas.

Leisure and hospitality led the way in terms of job gains over the past year, increasing by 33,600 jobs. Trade, transportation and utilities followed with 16,200 new jobs, and professional and business services grew by 10,800 jobs.

Adrienne Johnston, chief economist for the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, noted that strong consumer demand has been a factor in the strength in employment, as cited by CBS News.

Johnston also shared that the state is seeing a shift in the fastest-growing industries.

“Most of that is in industries that tend to have higher wages. So, for example, we’re seeing strong growth in financial activities and professional and business services. You can see here that we’ve outpaced the nation in terms of manufacturing,” said Johnston during a conference call.

The number of job openings in the state, up 12,000 from July 2021, is less than the total employment rate increase, indicating that staffing shortages may begin to ease in the near future.

In Orlando, part of the rebound in employment has been the result of leveraging partnerships in the area to create dynamic workforce programs, connecting people to jobs across industries.

“Partnerships are the biggest key for creative workforce development. Through the pandemic, we worked with CARES Act funding and federal funding to do an accelerated skills training program for our folks,” Orange County Economic Development Administrator Eric Ushkowitz told Invest: Insights earlier this year.

“We had a number of large facilities in the county like the Orange County Convention Center and utilized that space with Valencia College and CareerSource Central Florida to develop large-scale accelerated training programs in different areas. One of them was truck driving, which was a high-demand industry and skill in the community. Given the amount of space at the convention center, we were able to have much larger classes than we were able to have before in a much shorter time frame. The partnerships were integral to that and allowed us to be very nimble when developing new programs and getting folks back to work as soon as possible and fill those high-demand positions,” said Ushkowitz.

With Orlando’s economy becoming increasingly diverse, partnerships and workforce programs have been a driving force for continuing this positive trend in employment.

CareerSource Central Florida has played a role in providing training and assistance to businesses in need of workforce, serving 3,500 businesses in the 2021-2022 year. 

“In the last few months, we have seen an increase in business services demand from businesses in IT and finance, healthcare, trade and logistics and manufacturing,” Nilda Blanco, vice president of service delivery for CareerSource Central Florida, told Invest: on Tuesday.

“Today, businesses and individuals are still struggling from the pandemic. Some challenges we’ve seen include the Great Resignation, shifts in the worker’s mindset, and today we are seeing a tight labor market,” said Blanco. 

“With our insights and expertise in the industry, we put a focus on helping businesses and job seekers with what they need and want in today’s workforce. We can do this through our resources, trainings and with our coaches and programs that help job seekers find the right job for them and businesses grow with the right talent,” added Blanco.

Share This Story!