file photo by Boyd Loving
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, according to the Garden State initiative , “In their announcement for this month’s jobs report, the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development touted how the July unemployment rate of 4.2 percent marks the lowest unemployment rate for the state since July 2007. The unemployment rate is determined by dividing the total labor force by the number of unemployed persons in that labor force. However, despite the over-the-month gains, the state’s shrinking labor force as compared to a year ago—or three years ago—shows the danger of relying solely on a state’s unemployment rate as an accurate metric for economic growth. ”
GSI goes on , “While both of July’s economic reports for New Jersey showed positive growth over the month, cautious optimism is likely the healthiest response in terms of the state’s long-term economic outlook. Before this month, New Jersey’s economy had suffered five months in a row of a shrinking workforce.A shrinking workforce means that people are either leaving the state or fewer people in the state are working or looking for work. While it’s difficult to determine with the data whether people leave the workforce for financial or personal reasons, a continually shrinking workforce is more likely caused by deeper state policy issues than a sudden surge of retirees or snowbirds. ”
The ugly reality is people continue to flee the state in droves further eroding the tax base .