Statewide, South Florida Jobless Rates Drop
TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami) - Miami-Dade unemployment figures for the month of January dropped below double digits for the first time in years, echoing a continuing drop in state unemployment numbers released Tuesday.
Miami-Dade's rate dropped to a seasonally-adjusted 9.9%, down from 10.1% in December, and significantly down from the 10.7% rate seen in January, 2011.
The new numbers put Miami-Dade much close to the new state unemployment rate of 9.6%. That rate was down from 9.9% in December 2011, and the lowest rate since March 2009. It has gone down now in 11 out of the last 13 months.
Even so, the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity's numbers show that the state lost nearly 39,000 jobs in January.
New numbers released Tuesday show that the state's unemployment rate is now 9.6 percent.
Gov. Rick Scott has touted figures showing the state gained more than 100,000 jobs since he became governor. But the number for 2011 has been revised downward to 92,800 jobs. And the new data also shows that Florida actually lost 38,600 jobs in January.
The local jobless figures also spelled good news for Broward and Monroe County. Broward continues to report an unemployment rate lower than the state's. In fact, the 8.3% rate reported for Broward matches the national unemployment figures for January. Broward's rate has dropped almost a point and a half since January, 2011.
Based on the numbers, if you want to work you might consider trying the Keys. Monroe County continues to have the lowest unemployment rate in South Florida at just 5.7%, 1.2% lower than a year ago.
