MILWAUKEE (AP) — A federal report shows that Wisconsin’s job growth dropped dramatically in the first half of 2019, although economists say there’s little cause for concern.
The U.S. Department of Labor says the state had 2,945,000 nonfarm jobs through June, up 9,340 from the same period last year. That lagged well behind the year-over-year increases for every June since the recession ended a decade ago. From June 2017 to June 2018, Wisconsin added 27,000 jobs. The previous year, the state added 35,000.
Dennis Winters, chief economist for the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, tells the Journal Sentinel hat job growth has slowed nationally and in many other states. He says a key reason is that unemployment continues to be low, at 3.3% in Wisconsin in October and 3.6% nationally.
Winters says many business owners would expand if they had the workforce.
