The unemployment rate in Fergus Falls is improving, with 304 jobs added to the payroll since the beginning of the year. To put that in perspective, on average, 5 new jobs are added every day in the Fergus Falls area.
Compared to the national unemployment rate of 9.3% (May 2010), Fergus Falls is doing quite well with a mere 6.9% of the population being unemployed. Fergus Falls is also ahead of other near-by communities in the region, with similar population. In Alexandria, they're facing an 8.8% unemployment rate, while Bemidji and Brainerd are facing a whopping 11.1% and 12.4% unemployment rate, respectively.
With a labor force of 7,038, Fergus Falls has 6,554 of the total labor force employed, which equals out to 484 residents in the area being unemployed.
In email correspondence with Fergus Forum,Harold Stanislawski, the Executive Director of the Fergus Falls Economic Improvement Commission (FFEIC) said that job growth came in retail, manufacturing, health care, utilities, as well as construction. While some of these jobs are seasonal, current predictions show that at least half of the added jobs will become permanent pending a stable economy.<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: sans-serif;">
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The U.S. economy in May added the most jobs in a decade — 431,000 — largely because of census hiring. But the boom appears to be over, and that could translate into ugly overall employment numbers in the coming months if private employment doesn’t pick up.
The number of temporary workers for the decennial census peaked in early May at 585,729, according to the Census Bureau’s weekly tally. That was the week before the Labor Department conducted its survey for the May payroll figures (leading the May payroll figures to show a monthly gain of 411,000 temporary Census jobs). By the latest weekly reporting period, May 16-22, the tally of 2010 Census workers had already dropped to 549,450.
Historically, May is the peak month for hiring workers to canvass homes for the decennial census. As a result, the months that follow show net losses. In May 2000, census hiring jumped by 348,000 (to 530,000 total). The next month, it fell by 225,000 and showed significant declines for three more months. In May 1990, the government added 182,000 temporary census jobs. The next month, in June 1990, census employment dropped by 84,000.
Both of those peak census hiring months coincided with weak private payrolls. So the government hiring compensated for the private sector. Private-sector hiring fell by 73,000 in May 1990 and 120,000 in May 2000. It picked up the following month — by 60,000 in June 1990 and 214,000 in June 2000 — but overall nonfarm payroll growth was still weak in June of both years.
The two prior Census periods, of course, came months before the economy weakened. The 1990-91 recession started in July. By mid-2000 tech stocks had already peaked and a recession would begin the following March.
Improvement in the overall U.S. economy over the past year could provide a better foundation for private employment growth compared to the period after the two prior censuses. If it doesn’t, expect the monthly payroll report to show negative numbers — net losses across the overall economy — into the summer.
At least have the decency to credit the paper/website/etc that you steal this from.
(06-24-2010 08:52 AM)The Vikingman Wrote: [ -> ]At least have the decency to credit the paper/website/etc that you steal this from.
i hope you go and attack the poor for stealing taxes from those who try in life and have reasonable gains of employment also .
Nope I don't lincoln...I find them less offensive then you.
Polaris is trying to hire 150 works in Roseau MN. However, they can't find enough applicants. Reason???? Extended unemployment benefits. Why go work for $12-$14/hour when I can sit at home for 99 weeks on extended unemployment and make $10/hr? If we want to see unemployment rates fall, we need to stop stop rewarding people for doing nothing. Being able to sit around for 2 years and collect benefits really takes away a person's motivation not to mention getting into that routine of doing nothing all day...
Norske - as someone who is on unemployment after the company I worked for shut down I can tell you that while there may be some that are just milking unemployment I am not one of those. Currently I am attending school to become more marketable because apparently over 10 years experience in customer service and call center management don't amount to CRAP when those jobs do not exist anymore.
If you want to see unemployment decline stop wasting money on ice arenas and retail shops and look for ACTUAL career type employers.
I didn't get paid to attend school to make myself more marketable. I had to go to school and work a job to get by. Good for you for going to school. Thats great! However, i bet that if the unemployment benefits were not available you would be doing something to earn a wage. You would have too, right? That is my point, a lot of people aren't working becasue they don't have too.
My point is that simply stating, "You would have to right?" is a ridiculous statement for many individuals at this time.
Example, If somebody says to you, "You have to sell all of your assets house/car/etc in order to pay off all the debt you currently owe or you will be in bankruptcy and foreclosure" (yes I understand it is a extreme example) Telling you "You have to" doesn't make you have the ability to do it. You may even have the WILLINGNESS to do so but that still doesn't mean you will be successful. You need somebody to come along and purchase those objects.
See what I am saying here?