Governor DeSantis Announces the West Palm Beach Metro Area Labor Force Up 49,612 Over the Year

West Palm Beach, Fla. — Today, Governor Ron DeSantis announced that the West Palm Beach area labor force in December 2021, increased by 49,612 over the year, a 7.0% increase. The West Palm Beach area unemployment rate dropped to 3.3% in December 2021, down from 3.5% reported in December 2020. The metro area added 30,100 new private sector jobs over the year, a 5.4% increase. The West Palm Beach The industry gaining the most jobs over the year was leisure and hospitality, increasing by 9,800 jobs.

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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