Over the past 12 months, Ohio’s economy has added 41,800 jobs. But job growth and unemployment continue to trail national rates, according to the liberal-leaning Policy Matters Ohio.
The U.S. unemployment rate was 4.7 percent in December when employment grew by 156,000, bringing the nation’s average annual rate of job growth to 1.5 percent — nearly twice as fast as the 0.8 percent growth rate in Ohio, Policy Matters found.
“While last month’s job gains looked strong, we only saw gains in seven out of 12 months last year,” said Hannah Halbert, a Policy Matters researcher. “Overall, Ohio job growth last year was weak.”
But the latest jobs numbers show a tightening labor market with more job openings in higher-paying professions.
Last month’s job gains were led by professional and business services, up 5,900; trade, transportation, and utilities, which added 3,200 jobs; educational and health services, plus 2,700; and financial activities, up 1,600.
Manufacturing — which accounts for about one in eight jobs in Ohio, according to Policy Matters — also posted a gain of 1,100 jobs last month, offsetting some of the losses for the past year in which the manufacturing sector shed 2,900 jobs.
Still, Ohio remains the third-leading state in the nation for total manufacturing jobs with about 688,000 workers and has added just over 79,000 jobs since the national recovery began in June 2009, according to a recent Policy Matters report on manufacturing in Ohio.
“The loss of manufacturing jobs has devastated once thriving communities both rural and urban, across the state,” said Michael Shields, author of the manufacturing report. “But with nearly 700,000 Ohioans still working in this sector, we can’t count manufacturing out.”
The gain in manufacturing and other industries continues to push Ohio toward full employment, or the point where nearly everyone who wants a job can find a job.
“We conclude that individual states in the District (as well as the District as a whole) have almost no labor market slack remaining as of the end of the second quarter of 2016. By this metric, local labor markets do not seem to be any different than the aggregate national labor market,” read a recent report from Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, which represents the Federal Reserve’s Fourth District, including Ohio, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
About the Author