Map UW-Madison
New federal figures show Wisconsin ranked 33rd in the nation for private sector job growth during the 12 month period ending in March of this year. That’s according to new numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, which show the state added 28,712 private sector jobs between March of 2013 and 2014.
Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development Secretary Reggie Newson says the state’s private sector workforce grew at a faster rate than two neighboring Midwestern states – Minnesota and Illinois. Newson says that “means more opportunities for Wisconsin’s workforce and is in line with many other indicators showing our state’s economy continues to grow and add jobs.”
The numbers come from the BLS Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, long argued by Governor Scott Walker to be the “gold standard” of measuring job creation in Wisconsin. They are based on a census of 96 percent of the nation’s employers.
Meanwhile, the state also announced that Wisconsin’s unemployment rate dropped to 5.6 percent in August, down from 5.8 percent in July and 6.7 percent in August of 2013. The rate is the lowest since October of 2008. The national unemployment rate is at 6.1 percent.