MADISON, WI (Wisconsin Radio Network) – Wisconsin continues to lag behind much of the nation in creating private sector jobs.
Figures released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on Wednesday show the state’s growth rate during the 12 month period that ended in September of last year was 1.2 percent, compared to a national rate during that time period of 2.2 percent.
Wisconsin was listed as 36th among the states for the pace of job creation, adding 29,616 private sector jobs during the reporting period.
The ranking is consistent with where the state has fallen in census releases recent years.
The quarterly census numbers are based on a survey of 96 percent of employers. The results are typically seen as more accurate than monthly numbers, which are based on only about three percent of businesses.
Democrats cited the report as a sign that Republicans have failed to follow through on the promises of job creation they have made in the last four years.
Assembly Minority Leader Peter Barca (D-Kenosha) noted the state is dead last in the Midwest for job creation, while more than 10,000 workers received layoff notices last year. “Obviously is not working, it has not worked,” the Kenosha Democrat said.
Governor Scott Walker’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the BLS report.
