Noting more than a million jobs were created on his watch, Gov. Rick Scott announced on Friday that there were 35,600 new private sector jobs in Florida last month as the unemployment rate dropped to 5.0 percent.
Scott highlighted that more than a million jobs were created in Florida since he took over as governor at the start of 2011.
In October, the unemployment rate stood in Florida at 5.1 percent as it continued to drop in the later months of 2015. In August, the state unemployment rate stood at 5.3 percent, dipping down to 5.2 percent in September.
“Today, I am proud to announce that Florida’s hardworking businesses have created more than one million jobs across Florida in just five years,” Scott said on Friday. “Thanks to our focus on cutting taxes and making it easier for job creators to succeed, our businesses are creating jobs faster than we ever expected.”
Scott pitched his agenda for the Legislature which starts its regular session next month, including calling for $1 billion in tax cuts, mostly for manufacturers, and sending $250 million to Enterprise Florida to be used to lure companies to Florida.
“Even though today’s news is great, we have to continue to diversify our economy by cutting $1 billion in taxes and creating the Florida Enterprise Fund so Florida can be first for jobs,” Scott said.
State Department of Economic Opportunity Executive Director Jesse Panuccio, who announced his departure in recent weeks, praised Scott’s efforts in Tallahassee.
“In November, Florida’s economy hit two milestones: 1 million private-sector jobs in five years and the highest job demand in our history,” Panuccio said. :This incredible economic recovery has happened because of the leadership of Gov. Scott, who from day one has supported the policies that have helped families get good jobs – tax cuts, a sensible regulatory climate, and major investments in education and infrastructure. If we stay the course, Florida will have the strongest economy in the nation.”
The state unemployment rate is at the national average which stood at 5.0 percent in both October and November. Since Scott took office at the start of 2011, the unemployment rate has dropped 5.7 percent.
In the past year, the professional and business services industry led the way with 48,000 new jobs. Florida has seen record-high tourism numbers so far this year and the leisure and hospitality industry has seen 42,300 new jobs in the past twelve months. The education and health services industry saw 46,900 new jobs created in Florida over the last year while the trade, transportation, and utilities sector has seen 45,600 new jobs over the last year. Government jobs have fallen with 5,300 fewer in Florida over the past year.
Monroe County continues to have the lowest unemployment rate in the state at 3.3 percent with St. Johns County on the First Coast as the next lowest at 3.5 percent. Alachua and Okaloosa counties are the next lowest with unemployment rates of 4.1 percent each.
Hendry County continues to have the highest unemployment rate in the state at 8.3 percent but the unemployment rate had been in the double digits over the summer at 12.2 percent back in August and 11.4 percent in September. The next highest was Hardee County at 7.0 percent, down from 8.6 percent in September and 7.9 percent in October. Highlands County and Citrus County were next at 6.6 percent. In September, Highlands County had a 7.3 percent unemployment rate.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
