It’s about the economy.
Just a quick update on some unemployment numbers in North Carolina, which tells a lot about the state of the economy in our state. The May numbers will be out in a week or so but here are the numbers through April.
- 439,368 people in North Carolina are counted as unemployed.
- In January 2008, the unemployment rate in NC was 5.1%, in January 2009, it had risen to 9%.
- The unemployment rate in North Carolina has been 9% or higher for 40 months.
There isn’t much good news and the May unemployment rate is expected to exceed 9% again.
Kudos go out to the NC General Assembly for working towards a balanced budget with no tax increases, getting government off the backs of businesses and reforming education to ensure a well trained workforce. Unemployment numbers and jobs reports tell us a lot about the health of our state.
There’s a lot of work to be done and it’s all about the economy. A healthy economy creates jobs.