Biz Beat: GOP job counters need a math lesson. (Capital Times, 7/23/2011)
Excerpt: But claims that Wisconsin accounted for half of the nation's employment growth last month are pure fantasy.
In fact, Wisconsin didn't manage to crack into the top five states in job growth, even with its best monthly performance since 2003.
The largest over-the-month increase in employment in June came in Texas, which added 32,000 jobs followed by California (+28,800), Michigan (+18,000), Minnesota (+13,200) and Massachusetts (+10,400).
On a percentage basis, the top four states for growth were Alaska (+1.7 percent), North Dakota (+1.2 percent), Vermont (+0.9 percent) and South Dakota (+0.8 percent). Wisconsin came in at +0.3 percent.
Employment actually increased in 26 states last month, according to figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The reason the BLS figures show just 18,000 more net jobs in June is that other states saw a drop in the number of people working. Declines came in Tennessee (-16,900), Missouri (-15,700), Virginia (-14,600) and Kansas (-7,500), among others.
Moreover, the BLS figures are estimates based on interviews with employers, which further clouds their short-term value.
Related post:
Wisconsin jobs report. (7/22/2011)
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