Jobs Front Shows Improvement
Jobs have been an issue since early in 2008 when Chattooga had its highest unemployment rate approaching 20%. The Chamber has conducted polling of our largest manufacturers at more frequent intervals in recent years to monitor our continued progress toward recovery. While a rate of 10.6 is hardly desirable, Chattooga’s drop of .6 per cent is significant.
The last polling by the Chamber in October reflected that our largest employers had pulled back to within just a few jobs, less than 10, of their January 2008 levels. We expect to add to that total in our January 2012 polling.
Georgia saw the largest one month decline in unemployment since 1977 sparking Labor Commissioner, Mark Butler, to direct staff to double check the numbers. The figures were confirmed for the Commissioner and released to the public this week.
The long reaching effects of the decline in housing has continued to inflict pain across the carpet belt of NW Georgia. As you can see from the graphic, the counties where the carpet industry has a large presence also represent the counties with the larger unemployment rates.
While interstate highways have oft been considered a magnet for new industry expansion, it should be noted that those along the I-75 corridor have not fared much better in their rates in recent months with Gordon, Bartow, and Whitfield having very similar rates as Chattooga. It begs the question…was the rapid expansion along the 75 corridor over the past two decades, along with the increased population, really only worth a few tenths of a percentage point in employment gains? These counties recall the old saying, “the bigger they are the harder they fall.” Each of our surrounding counties have faced plant closures causing much pain to those employees impacted. Larger company executives have credited workers in Chattooga county with a “work ethic” that prevented the type of closures seen in other areas.
The growing regional effect of the Chattanooga Metropolitan Area is also noted in the counties that border Chattanooga’s Hamilton county. Over 40% of the workforce of Dade, Walker, and Catoosa counties work in Hamilton County Tennessee hence the positive impact on employment numbers. This 40% number was before the opening of Volkswagen, Amazon, and Wacker which will continue to have a positive influence on the northern tier of counties, and hopefully Chattooga, in the years to come.
The goal is for everyone to have gainful employment. We won’t rest on a few good months of positive news, or be detered by negative months. We will support our local industries as our quickest best bet for employment gains, continue our support of the commercial sector, encourage continued development of our tourism assets, and form new partnerships regionally with our colleges and technical institutions to move us forward into 2012.
Thanks for your support over the years! A Merry Christmas and Prosperous New Year to all.
