Florida’s Unemployment Rate Drops Again Despite Irma

by | Oct 20, 2017


Florida’s unemployment rate has dropped once again, despite the fact that Hurricane Impact dealt a significant blow to the state’s economy in September.

In figures released Friday morning, the state’s unemployment rate fell to 3.8 percent, the lowest level in more than a decade.

The data shows a reduction in the number of private-sector jobs in September as the result of Irma. But, officials with the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity say that job reduction was solely for the month of September as businesses struggled to reopen their doors.

“Hurricane Irma was the largest storm we have seen, which affected our entire state and led to the largest evacuation and power restoration effort,” said Gov. Rick Scott. “Obviously, our jobs numbers were affected because of this. Florida is a resilient state and we are working around the clock to rebuild and recover from this unprecedented storm.”

The state has taken steps to help Florida families and business owners quickly recover from Irma. Various disaster-related resources have been activated, including the Disaster Unemployment Program, the Florida Small Business Emergency Bridge Loan Program and the Florida Citrus Emergency Loan Program.

“As we restore businesses damaged from this natural disaster, it is more important than ever that we focus on getting Floridians back to work so families throughout the state can continue to flourish,” said DEO Executive Director Cissy Proctor.

Florida’s 24 regional workforce boards reported 20,022 Floridians were placed in jobs last month.

More than 1.3 million private-sector jobs have been created across Florida since December 2010.

For more information on September’s job numbers, click here.

 

 

 

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