by Kimberly James
Connecticut’s nine-month job growth streak came to an end with a reported loss of 1,700 private-sector jobs in January.
One industry expert said the loss is reflective of the state’s dealings with the economy in recent years.
“The loss of private-sector jobs shows that Connecticut had systemic issues that the pandemic further exposed, specifically a decade of policies that did not nurture and support population and business growth,” Chris DiPentima, president and CEO of the Connecticut Business and Industry Association (CBIA), told The Center Square.
This results, DiPentima said, in a full-blown labor crisis, with the state’s unemployment rate reaching 5.3%, which is sixth highest in the country.
Industries that continue to perform well include construction, transportation, and logistics.
“The construction industry has recovered 126% of the jobs lost during the pandemic, and trade, utilities and transportation have recovered 96% of the jobs lost,” DiPentima said. “Construction will continue to see growth with $5.4 billion in federal monies coming to Connecticut for infrastructure and transportation projects.
“The transportation and logistics industries are also likely to continue to grow with the move to online buying with Connecticut being a desirable location in light of lower real estate costs than New York and Boston yet access to similar ports, road and rail lines.”
According to DiPentima, many of Connecticut’s industries would have more employees today than pre-pandemic if they could fill the job openings. For example, the manufacturing industry has recovered 67% of the jobs lost during the pandemic but has 40% more job openings than it had before the pandemic hit. That alone put manufacturing employment at a higher level than pre-pandemic levels.
DiPentima said these staggering statistics further emphasize how critical it is for policymakers to change the narrative from years of anti-business sentiment and policies and prioritize policies that address job growth and the workforce challenge by making it easier – not harder – to live and do business in Connecticut.
“The cost of living has always been a problem in Connecticut brought on in part by significant long-term liabilities, debt obligations and government spending that has increased 168% since 1990 despite having nearly the same size population and number of workers,” DiPentima said. “Lawmakers have the opportunity this legislative session to not only hold the line on taxes but use a budget surplus and federal relief dollars to make Connecticut a more affordable place to live and do business.”
DiPentima said the state currently has 110,000 job openings, but the labor force has declined by more than 80,000 since the beginning of the pandemic.
“If every unemployed Connecticut resident found a job today, we’d still have 18,100 open jobs to fill,” DiPentima said.
Connecticut’s nine-month job growth streak came to an end with a reported loss of 1,700 private-sector jobs in January.
One industry expert said the loss is reflective of the state’s dealings with the economy in recent years.
“The loss of private-sector jobs shows that Connecticut had systemic issues that the pandemic further exposed, specifically a decade of policies that did not nurture and support population and business growth,” Chris DiPentima, president and CEO of the Connecticut Business and Industry Association (CBIA), told The Center Square.
This results, DiPentima said, in a full-blown labor crisis, with the state’s unemployment rate reaching 5.3%, which is sixth highest in the country.
Industries that continue to perform well include construction, transportation, and logistics.
“The construction industry has recovered 126% of the jobs lost during the pandemic, and trade, utilities and transportation have recovered 96% of the jobs lost,” DiPentima said. “Construction will continue to see growth with $5.4 billion in federal monies coming to Connecticut for infrastructure and transportation projects.
“The transportation and logistics industries are also likely to continue to grow with the move to online buying with Connecticut being a desirable location in light of lower real estate costs than New York and Boston yet access to similar ports, road and rail lines.”
According to DiPentima, many of Connecticut’s industries would have more employees today than pre-pandemic if they could fill the job openings. For example, the manufacturing industry has recovered 67% of the jobs lost during the pandemic but has 40% more job openings than it had before the pandemic hit. That alone put manufacturing employment at a higher level than pre-pandemic levels.
DiPentima said these staggering statistics further emphasize how critical it is for policymakers to change the narrative from years of anti-business sentiment and policies and prioritize policies that address job growth and the workforce challenge by making it easier – not harder – to live and do business in Connecticut.
“The cost of living has always been a problem in Connecticut brought on in part by significant long-term liabilities, debt obligations and government spending that has increased 168% since 1990 despite having nearly the same size population and number of workers,” DiPentima said. “Lawmakers have the opportunity this legislative session to not only hold the line on taxes but use a budget surplus and federal relief dollars to make Connecticut a more affordable place to live and do business.”
DiPentima said the state currently has 110,000 job openings, but the labor force has declined by more than 80,000 since the beginning of the pandemic.
“If every unemployed Connecticut resident found a job today, we’d still have 18,100 open jobs to fill,” DiPentima said.
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Kimberly James is a contributor to The Center Square.
