Only for the second time in history, the count of non-farm jobs in Louisiana exceeds two million.
The state surpassed the milestone during the second quarter of this year.
Adam Knapp, the chief executive officer of Leaders for a Better Louisiana, describes this as excellent news and an indication of the economy’s expansion.
The state hasn’t exceeded 2 million jobs since 2014 as it approached 2015,” says Knapp. “There was a roughly four-month span where it went above 2 million, and it has remained under that figure ever since.
Knapp states that although the job growth can be linked to initiatives aimed at developing diverse and robust industries, two of them are at the forefront.
Health care and manufacturing remain significant contributors to the state’s economy,” Knapp states. “In fact, manufacturing ranks among the top 20 sectors for growth nationwide.
Health care created nearly 6,000 new positions in the last year, while higher education and retail also experienced substantial employment increases.
Knapp states that each area of the state is seeing an increase in employment opportunities.
All 10 metropolitan areas in Louisiana that we have shown job growth,” says Knapp. “That’s a very positive indication. That doesn’t always happen; in fact, it’s uncommon.
The Northshore has been performing exceptionally well,” Knapp added. “They are significantly ahead in the metro area, specifically in Slidell and Hammond; they are truly at the forefront of the state.
In total, Louisiana has experienced 51 straight months of year-over-year employment growth.
