A report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows job growth in Wisconsin continues to lag behind many other states.
The BLS report says Wisconsin’s private sector job growth during the year that ended in June was at 1.5 percent, making the Badger State 32nd in the nation and well behind the national rate of 2.3 percent during that time period. The numbers come from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, widely considered the most accurate indicator of job growth since it surveys 96 percent of employers.
The monthly unemployment updates are based on a survey of only about 3.5 percent of employers, which state officials have criticized in the past as being inaccurate indicators of growth. Still, they have showed continued improvement for the state over the past several months, with the latest report released Thursday showing Wisconsin’s unemployment rate fell to 5.2 percent in November, with the state adding about 16,500 private sector jobs last month. Those figures are subject to heavy revisions at a later date though.
