- December 11, 2024
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Palm Coast is a state leader in job growth in a few key sectors, according to the latest employment data from the Center for Business Excellence.
The Palm Coast metro area had the highest employment growth rates in professional and business services (+15.0%); financial activities (+14.3%); and mining, logging, and construction (+12.5%) for all metro areas in Florida.
The January 2013 unemployment rate was 11.0% in Flagler County, the second highest in the state. That’s up from 10.8% in December. Lori McMullin, CBE’s director of business operations and communications, said that increase could be the result of jobs being cut after the holiday hiring season.
In the state
Gov. Rick Scott also announced March 18 that since December 2010, Florida has created 282,200 private-sector jobs, and Florida’s January unemployment rate decreased below the national average to 7.8%.
This is Florida’s lowest unemployment rate since November 2008, and falls below the national average unemployment rate for the first time since January 2008.
In Palm Coast
Nonagricultural employment in the Palm Coast metro area (Flagler County) was 20,200 in January 2013. Total nonagricultural employment was up 400 jobs (+2.0%) over the year. Statewide, employment increased by 1.8% over the same time period.
Five of the 10 major industries gained jobs over the year, led by professional and business services (+300 jobs); trade, transportation, and utilities (+200); and mining, logging, and construction, financial activities, and leisure and hospitality (+100 each).
Government (-200 jobs) and manufacturing and information (-100 each) lost jobs over the year.
Education and health services and other services remained unchanged over the year.
In Volusia County
To the south, in Volusia County, unemployment is 8.2%. Combined with Flagler, that puts the region’s unemployment at 8.6%, up from 8.4% in December.
The January 2013 regional rate was 1.6% lower than the year-ago rate. Out of a labor force of 283,786, there were 24,327 unemployed residents in the region.
Leisure and hospitality (+6.1%); mining, logging, and construction (+5.6%); trade, transportation, and utilities (+3.7%); manufacturing (+2.4%); and financial activities (+1.3%) employment grew faster in the Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach metro area than in the state.