Drew Dixon
The unemployment rate in Florida came in at 3.7% for May, unchanged from the April figure.
FloridaCommerce released the new jobless figure. While the rate held steady month to month, that rate is still higher than any number seen in 2024.
Last year closed with a 3.4% unemployment rate. The rate has steadily increased from there, with no declines so far this year.
In the year-over-year comparison, the latest unemployment rate for the Sunshine State is up a notable 0.4 percentage points from May 2024’s figure of 3.3%.
Florida’s jobless figure is still lower than the national rate. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) reports the jobless figure across the country was 4.2% in May, unchanged from April. It’s the 55th straight month that Florida has had a lower rate than the nation.
The FloridaCommerce Bureau of Workforce Statistics and Economic Research reported that there were 414,000 Floridians who were unemployed last month out of a workforce of 11.2 million people.
While the overall jobless rate remained unchanged, FloridaCommerce officials say total private-sector jobs increased by 22,900, a 0.3% hike. The industry sector that gained the most jobs last month was in professional business services, adding 7,100 workers.
“Under Gov. Ron DeSantis’ leadership, Florida continues to drive strategic economic expansion and job creation across key sectors, with (May’s) strong growth in manufacturing being the result of that,” said Secretary of Commerce J. Alex Kelly.
South Florida, once again, is leading the state with the best employment picture. Miami registered a 2.7% unemployment rate in May. It’s unchanged from April but it is a 0.4-percentage-point increase from May 2024, when that rate was 2.3%.
Fort Lauderdale wasn’t far off Miami’s pace, posting a 3.3% unemployment rate. That’s up slightly from April’s rate of 3.2% and up by 0.4 percentage points from May 2024, when the rate was 2.9%.
West Palm Beach was hanging closely with its South Florida neighbors, recording a 3.4% unemployment rate last month, which is unchanged from April. But it is up 0.3 percentage points from May 2024’s figure of 3.1%.
Orlando saw the same unemployment figure as West Palm Beach, which is up slightly from April’s figure of 3.3%. But Orlando saw a jump of 0.4 percentage points over May 2024.
Tampa had a 3.5% unemployment rate, unchanged from April. But it’s a 0.3-percentage-point increase from May last year.
Jacksonville is struggling with unemployment a bit more than South Florida. The First Coast city posted a 3.6% jobless figure in May. That’s up slightly from April’s rate of 3.5% and up by 0.4 percentage points from May 2024, when the figure was 3.2%.
Southwest Florida and the Pensacola area recorded the highest unemployment rates among the largest metro areas in the state. They both had a 3.8% unemployment rate, with the Fort Myers and Pensacola areas increasing the same from April’s figure of 3.7% and both increasing over May 2024’s figure. Pensacola’s rate last year was 3.3%, and the Fort Myers figure a year ago was 3.2%.
