MIAMI-DADE COUNTY’S UNEMPLOYMENT RATE FALLS
FOR THE FIFTH MONTH IN A ROW

(Miami, FL – Dec. 16, 2011)

Miami-Dade County’s unemployment rate fell again for the fifth month in a row – since July -- and other economic signs, including job gains, are also showing an improvement in the local recovery.
“We see a positive trend developing on the employment front, but there is still a lot of work to do,” said Frank R. Nero, President and CEO of The Beacon Council, the county’s official economic development partnership. “We are looking to see what happens after the holidays as clearly a lot of the growth was in the retail section, but it’s a good trend especially during the holiday season when families get together.”
 
The numbers analyzed
The county’s not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for November 2011 was 9.4 percent and the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate (taking in consideration seasonal fluctuations in the labor force) was 10.2 percent. This is compared to 10.7 percent not seasonally adjusted and 10.8 percent seasonally adjusted in October 2011 – a decrease of 1.3 percentage points and 0.6 percentage points respectively.

Between November 2010 and November 2011, Miami-Dade County gained 18,700 new nonagricultural jobs, an increase of 1.9 percent. In addition, the community added 7,000 new nonagricultural jobs between October 2011 and November 2011, an increase of 0.7 percent. Our community had the second largest year-over-year gain in the State of Florida after the Tampa area, a trend we’ve been seeing for several months.

The November 2011 unemployment rate for the State of Florida was 9.8 percent, a decrease of 0.3 percentage points compared to October 2011. The U.S. unemployment rate was 8.2 percent in November 2011 compared to 8.5 percent in October 2011.

For neighboring Broward County, the unemployment rate in November 2011 was 8.9 percent. The rate was the same in October 2011 and a decrease of 1.8 percentage points compared to November 2010. For Palm Beach County, it was 10.1 percent, a decrease of 0.2 percentage points compared to October 2011 and a decrease of 2.3 percentage points compared to November 2010.

The overall unemployment rate for the tri-county area in November 2011 was 9.4 percent (10.0 percent in October 2011). The South Florida region (Miami-Ft. Lauderdale-Pompano Beach MSA) added 30,200 non-agricultural jobs between November 2010 and November 2011. Between October 2011 and November 2011 the region gained 15,400 jobs.

Non-agricultural companies in Miami-Dade County added 18,700 new jobs between November 2010 and November 2011, an increase of 1.9 percent. During this time frame, several sectors saw improvements including Wholesale Trade, Retail Trade, Transportation, Warehousing and Utilities, Professional and Business Services, and Leisure and Hospitality. Construction lost 400 jobs. Financial Activity and Manufacturing lost 2,100 and 900 jobs respectively between November 2010 and November 2011.

Sector
November 2010 – November 2011 Job Change (% Change)
Professional & Business Services   –   4,300 (+3.3%)
Retail Trade   –    5,000 (+4.0%)
Leisure & Hospitality   –    2,600 (+2.4%)
Hospitals   –   2,200 (+5.1%)
Ambulatory Health Care Services   –    2,600 (+5.1%)
Local Government   –    600 (+0.5%)
Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities   –   1,000 (+1.7%)
Wholesale Trade   –    1,500 (+2.2%)
State Government   –    100 (+0.6%)
 
Between October 2011 and November 2011, 7,000 jobs were added or a 0.7 percent increase. Major sectors that added jobs between October 2011 and November 2011 included Wholesale Trade, Retail Trade, Transportation, Warehousing and Utilities, Information, Financial Activities, and Leisure and Hospitality. The major sectors that lost jobs between October 2011 and November 2011 were Construction (500 jobs lost or 1.6 percent decline) and Professional and Business Services (2,000 jobs lost or 1.5 percent decline).
 
Sector
October 2011 – November 2011 Job Change (% Change)
Retail Trade   –   4,500 (+3.6%)
Wholesale Trade   –   1,600 (+2.3%)
Leisure & Hospitality   –   1,400 (+1.3%)
Ambulatory Health Care Services   –   900 (+1.7%)
Financial Activities   –   400 (+0.7%)
Transportation, Warehousing, and Utilities   –   400 (+0.7%)
Information 100   –   (+0.6%)

From the data and analysis above, we see that there is continued improvement in the local economy, but the community needs to remain focused on job creation projects in a wide variety of sectors in order to create additional well paying new job opportunities for people looking for work that will allow for them and their families to enjoy the quality of life in Miami-Dade County. The Beacon Council continues to aggressively work on attracting new companies to our community and working on the expansion and retention of existing business. We promote Miami-Dade County as a global business center through our “Miami: Where Worlds Meet” campaign. We strongly urge that a top focus of both the public and private sector continues to be on the retention and recruitment of new jobs.

Source: The Miami-Dade Beacon Council

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