Georgia Ahead of the National Average in Job Growth

Georgia Ahead of the National Average in Job Growth

More than 183,000 Jobs Created Since January 2003; Governor Thanks General Assembly for Support

ATLANTA – Governor Sonny Perdue announced today that the state of Georgia is ahead of the national average in job growth with more than 183,000 jobs created since January 2003. Governor Perdue made the announcement during his traditional Sine Die speech before the State Senate.

“Our emphasis on creating jobs has been bearing fruit. The new data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics is in and the news is very good,” said Governor Sonny Perdue. “Georgia has added more than 183,000 new jobs since January 2003.”

The Bureau of Labor Statistics recently revised its employment data to reflect the additional 60,000 jobs created in Georgia. The revised data shows Georgia is ahead of the national average in job growth, instead of lagging behind it as previously reported.

Governor Perdue thanked the General Assembly for passing eight out of his ten legislative agenda items with an average vote of more than 94 percent in favor.

“I am proud to say that we stayed focused on our priorities. More than 70 percent of our new revenues in the budget you are completing today go toward my top priority of educating our children,” said Governor Sonny Perdue. “A number of important education bills passed this year and I look forward to signing them into law.”

Accomplishments of this year’s General Assembly include a strong eminent domain bill to protect private property rights, the toughest measure in the nation cracking down on sexual predators, class size reductions, tax credits for child care and land conservation, and tax cuts for home heating and senior citizens.

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Fact Sheet: Georgia Ahead of the National Average in Job Growthh

Corrected Employment Data Reports, More than 183,000 new jobs created since January 2003 (60,000 more than previous reported)

The Bureau of Labor Statistic’s revisions to employment data corrected the report of job growth in Georgia from lagging behind the U.S. average to being ahead of the U.S average.

Revised non-farm employment data for January 2006 was published in March by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This included the annual benchmarking of employment data and resulted in large upward revisions to Georgia’s employment levels for much of 2004 and 2005.

The chart below (1) compares the original monthly data for Georgia to the revised data. The original data indicated that job growth stalled after August 2004 and only regained solid momentum in July 2005. In contrast, the revised data show that job growth continued unabated throughout this period. For December 2005, the revised data indicated that total employment was up by 60,000 jobs or 1.5 percent compared to the original data releases.

Revisions to non-farm employment data reestablish Georgia as an employment growth leader among the states.

The chart below (2) compares the year over year percent growth in Georgia’s non-farm employment for the revised and original data to that of the U.S. The original data indicated that Georgia lagged the U.S. until the last few months. In contrast, the revised data show that Georgia’s growth led overall U.S. growth for the entire period except for one month in 2004.

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