State of Florida Department of Economic Opportunity

01/21/2022 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 01/21/2022 08:49

The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity Announces the Orlando Area December 2021 Employment Data

Governor DeSantis Announces the Orlando Metro Area Gained the Highest Number of Private Sector Jobs in December 2021

Orlando, Fla. - Today, Governor Ron DeSantis announced that the Orlando area gained the highest number of private sector jobs in December 2021, among all metro areas and had the fastest private sector over-the-year job growth rate. Orlando added 87,900 new private sector jobs, increasing by 8.3% over the year. Orlando's unemployment rate was 3.8% in December 2021, down from 4.5% reported in December 2020.

The Orlando area labor force in December 2021, increased by 114,624 over the year, a 9.3% increase. The industries gaining the most jobs over the year include leisure and hospitality, increasing by 32,800 jobs; trade, transportation, and utilities, increasing by 15,800 jobs; professional and business services, increasing by 14,100 jobs; and education and health services, increasing by 10,100 jobs. The Orlando area led the metro areas in job gains in leisure and hospitality; education and health services; construction; and manufacturing.

In total, Florida has gained 1,168,400 private sector jobs since April 2020, which represents the recovery of 92.1% of jobs lost during the pandemic. Florida continues to see significant increases in labor force, growing by 616,000 over the year as Floridians remain confident in returning to the labor force. Florida's unemployment rate has lowered to 4.4%, decreasing by 0.7 percentage point over the year.

Data in the month of December indicates that there continue to be many job opportunities available for Floridians throughout the state, with nearly 550,000 jobs posted online. Floridians in search of work and new job opportunities are encouraged to turn to the CareerSource Florida network for help. Floridians can find guidance to register with Employ Florida and search listings of available local job openings. Career seekers also can improve employability by perfecting resume writing and interviewing skills, establishing career goals, and pursuing customized career training. These services are provided at no cost to job seekers.

To view the statewide December 2021 employment data, visit www.floridajobs.org/labor-market-information/labor-market-information-press-releases/monthly-press-releases.

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