Florida Unemployment Rate Reaches 11.7%

This August, Florida's unemployment rate climbed to 11.7%, up from 11.5% in July of this year. This means that approximately 1 million of the 9.2 million Florida workers are jobless, according to the Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation. Florida's unemployment rate is now 2% higher than the nation's average.

The state lost 16,000 jobs last month, with the biggest losses in sectors such as construction, manufacturing, real estate and government.

Florida's Unemployment Rate Drops in April 2010

Florida's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for April 2010 is 12%, down from March's 12.3%. This is the first time Florida's unemployment rate has gone down since February 2006, signaling a possible shift in the job market.

Even so, 1,113,000 out of 9,282,000 Floridians in the labor force are still jobless and the state still has a long way to go before unemployment rates return to normalcy.

Nationally, the unemployment rate rose from 9.7% to 9.9%; but this is not bad news. The unemployment rate does not take into account hidden unemployment, or discouraged workers who have given up on the job search. Many of the 9.9% were discouraged workers who regained confidence in the job market and have begun to look for work again.

Stimulus Spending has Helped 153,000 Florida Workers

A year ago, Florida expected to receive $12.5 billion from the stimulus bill. Now the estimate is up to $19.5 billion, as 153,000 Florida workers' jobs have been either saved or created as a result of stimulus spending.

Although Florida still suffers from a rising unemployment rate, currently at 12.3%, conditions would be much worse without the federal spending which extended unemployment benefits and created job opportunities for Floridians.

The stimulus bill has helped save or create jobs for 2.8 million workers nationwide.

Associated Press Economic Stress Index

The Associated Press (AP) has compiled foreclosure, unemployment, and bankruptcy data in order to create a county-by-county index of the impact of the current economic situation across the nation.

The Economic Stress Index map shows a trend of highly populated, urban areas experiencing the worst of the recession and rural, inland areas experiencing a less harsh recession. The indices range from 0 to 100, with 100 being the areas most affected by the recession.

Broward and Miami-Dade Counties both have an Economic Stress Index of over 15 and Palm Beach County follows with an index of almost 14. This is due to high levels of unemployment, foreclosures and bankrupcy across South Florida.

Florida's Unemployment Reaches 17-Year High

Florida's unemployment jumped a whole percentage point from 7.6% in December 2008 to 8.6% in January 2009. This increase marks a 17-year high for Florida's unemployment.

The total number of unemployed in the state is estimated at 800,000, with over 300,000 job losses this January alone. Some project the effects of the recession to linger in Florida until mid 2011 and estimate unemployment to rise to over 10% in the state. 

However, the $13 billion stimulus package is projected to create 200,000 Florida jobs and has extended eligibility for unemployment benefits for up to 59 weeks.