Jones Lang LaSalle
State's job pace lags the nation's
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 04/20/06
BY MICHAEL L. DIAMOND
BUSINESS WRITER
New Jersey added 3,700 jobs in March, and its jobless rate fell to 4.5 percent from 4.7 percent in February, the state Labor and Workforce Development Department reported Wednesday.
The figures indicate the job market is growing slowly and steadily, economists said, but not fast enough to keep up with the rest of the country.
"This is basically a continuation of what we've been seeing the past two years," said James W. Hughes, an economist and dean of the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University. "The past two years has seen slow overall growth, and the growth that does take place has been in the low-paid sectors."
By comparison, the nation added 211,000 jobs in March, and its unemployment rate fell to 4.7 percent in March from 4.8 percent in February. Because New Jersey accounts for about 3 percent of the job market, it should have created 6,330 jobs.
Taken over a longer time frame, Hughes said, the statistics are more discouraging. He said the state added 4,600 jobs during the first quarter, all of which were in the public sector. That puts the state on pace to create 18,400 jobs for the year — a far cry from the 70,000 jobs a year it has historically created during an expansion.
Business groups have said the state's high costs and strict regulations have caused many employers to move elsewhere.
Monmouth Rubber and Plastics Corp., a Long Branch manufacturer of rubber and plastic used in products such as football and baseball helmets, might have to vacate its 35,000-square-foot building to make way for a redevelopment project, owner John M. Bonforte Sr. said.
Where he winds up isn't certain. Bonforte has visited Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina, where he said public officials have greeted him warmly.
But it sounds as if he would rather stay in New Jersey. The company has 48 employees, compared with 42 a year ago, thanks to a robust economy that has created a demand for its products, Bonforte said.
"We've done the numbers," Bonforte said. "You can do it in New Jersey if the right people in the state know you're there and appreciate you're there, so there's a cooperative approach to whatever problem comes along."
The state's private sector recovered in March by adding 3,300 jobs, the state reported. The leisure and hospitality sector gained 2,200 jobs; the education and health services sector added 1,700 jobs; and the trade, transportation and utilities sector added 1,100 jobs.
Two sectors that are considered high-paying, however, lost jobs. Professional and business services lost 1,100 jobs and financial activities lost 100, the state reported.
Vicki Fowler, owner of Spherion Corp., an employment agency in Shrewsbury, said high-paying jobs remain there for the taking for workers who have strong computer and communication skills.
And David J. Socolow, acting commissioner of the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, said New Jersey is taking steps to ensure workers have more high-paying jobs to choose from.
One example: A work-force training program that once was geared solely toward manufacturers is being expanded to include companies from targeted sectors — technology, pharmaceutical, logistics and transportation to name a few — that pay more than the state's median wage, Socolow said.
"We're using the work-force development (program) in a more targeted and strategic way," Socolow said.
State's job pace lags the nation's
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 04/20/06
BY MICHAEL L. DIAMOND
BUSINESS WRITER
New Jersey added 3,700 jobs in March, and its jobless rate fell to 4.5 percent from 4.7 percent in February, the state Labor and Workforce Development Department reported Wednesday.
The figures indicate the job market is growing slowly and steadily, economists said, but not fast enough to keep up with the rest of the country.
"This is basically a continuation of what we've been seeing the past two years," said James W. Hughes, an economist and dean of the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers University. "The past two years has seen slow overall growth, and the growth that does take place has been in the low-paid sectors."
By comparison, the nation added 211,000 jobs in March, and its unemployment rate fell to 4.7 percent in March from 4.8 percent in February. Because New Jersey accounts for about 3 percent of the job market, it should have created 6,330 jobs.
Taken over a longer time frame, Hughes said, the statistics are more discouraging. He said the state added 4,600 jobs during the first quarter, all of which were in the public sector. That puts the state on pace to create 18,400 jobs for the year — a far cry from the 70,000 jobs a year it has historically created during an expansion.
Business groups have said the state's high costs and strict regulations have caused many employers to move elsewhere.
Monmouth Rubber and Plastics Corp., a Long Branch manufacturer of rubber and plastic used in products such as football and baseball helmets, might have to vacate its 35,000-square-foot building to make way for a redevelopment project, owner John M. Bonforte Sr. said.
Where he winds up isn't certain. Bonforte has visited Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina, where he said public officials have greeted him warmly.
But it sounds as if he would rather stay in New Jersey. The company has 48 employees, compared with 42 a year ago, thanks to a robust economy that has created a demand for its products, Bonforte said.
"We've done the numbers," Bonforte said. "You can do it in New Jersey if the right people in the state know you're there and appreciate you're there, so there's a cooperative approach to whatever problem comes along."
The state's private sector recovered in March by adding 3,300 jobs, the state reported. The leisure and hospitality sector gained 2,200 jobs; the education and health services sector added 1,700 jobs; and the trade, transportation and utilities sector added 1,100 jobs.
Two sectors that are considered high-paying, however, lost jobs. Professional and business services lost 1,100 jobs and financial activities lost 100, the state reported.
Vicki Fowler, owner of Spherion Corp., an employment agency in Shrewsbury, said high-paying jobs remain there for the taking for workers who have strong computer and communication skills.
And David J. Socolow, acting commissioner of the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, said New Jersey is taking steps to ensure workers have more high-paying jobs to choose from.
One example: A work-force training program that once was geared solely toward manufacturers is being expanded to include companies from targeted sectors — technology, pharmaceutical, logistics and transportation to name a few — that pay more than the state's median wage, Socolow said.
"We're using the work-force development (program) in a more targeted and strategic way," Socolow said.
posted by Jones Lang LaSalle NJ News Blog at 4:58 PM
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