Professional, business services jobs hit an all-time high

Professional and business services jobs in Miami-Dade County hit an all-time high in June while unemployment remained at 2.2%, far below state and national levels.

The gain in professional and business services from June 2022 was 14,500 jobs in Miami-Dade according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, reaching 216,400 jobs in the sector, a 7.2% annual increase. The gain from May was 1,100 jobs. Statewide, the jobs gain in the sector was 3.4%.

Miami-Dade had the fastest annual job growth among Florida’s 14 metropolitan areas for the Trade, Transportation and Utilities jobs, up 4.5% compared with 3.4% for the entire state, according to the Bureau of Labor Market Statistics of the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity. The sector had 321,000 jobs, the most since the all-time high of 324,200 last December.

Breaking down that sector into three components, the state’s figures show wholesale trade jobs in Miami-Dade grew by 4.9% to 79,600 jobs in June, retail trade jobs grew at a 3.4% pace to 145,400, and the transportation, warehousing and utilities portion grew 5.7% to 96,000 Miami-Dade jobs. All three of those areas grew faster in the county than in Florida as a whole.

On the other hand, as construction jobs throughout Florida showed an uptick for the first time in 2023, construction work in Miami-Dade continued its slide. Construction jobs fell by 100 in the county from May to June and now stand at 50,100, down 6.2% from June 2022.

The entire state had lost construction jobs over the five prior months before gaining an estimated 4,000 jobs in June, according to the News Service of Florida.

“Nearly half of the job gains in construction this month, about 47%, came from building equipment contractors, which includes plumbing, HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) and electrical contracted services,” Lindsay Volpe, deputy secretary of the state’s Division of Workforce Services, said of construction throughout Florida. “While one month is too soon to see a trend, we are seeing promising increases and new construction permitting.”

Construction employment increased in 45 states in June from a year earlier, while 33 states added construction jobs from May to June, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America. Association officials said the job gains were welcome, but that widespread construction labor shortages mean many firms would probably have hired even more workers had they found qualified candidates.

“Unlike some other parts of the economy, construction is showing no letup in activity,” said Ken Simonson, the association’s chief economist. “But with an industry unemployment rate of only 3.6%, contractors in many states have had a tough time in recent months finding enough workers to execute all of their projects.”

Miami-Dade’s labor force grew by 8,000 persons from May to June, according to US Bureau of Labor Statistics figures. Employment in the county grew by 7,700 over the month, while the number of unemployed persons also rose by 300, leaving the unemployment rate at 2.2%
Florida’s near-historic low unemployment rate remained at 2.6%, unchanged since it was 2.7% in December.

The June rate represented an estimated 280,000 Floridians qualified as unemployed, up 3,000 from May, from a labor force that grew by 41,000 to 10.998 million.

The Miami-Dade and state unemployment rates remained below the national rate of 3.6%.

Mr. Volpe predicted that Florida’s rate probably will change little in the near future. It is slightly above the all-time low of 2.4%, last seen in June 2006.

“This stability is thanks, in part, to Florida’s growing labor force,” Mr. Volpe said during a conference call with reporters. “Floridians are confident entering the workforce to find meaningful employment.”

Leisure and hospitality jobs in Miami-Dade fell 4,000 from May but remain 4% more than in June 2022 at 142,900 persons working in the sector.

Statewide, leisure and hospitality jobs – the second biggest growth sector for the state over the past year – dropped by 3,000 in June.

Manufacturing jobs in Miami-Dade declined by 400 workers in June to 45,200, though jobs in the sector were still up 5.4% from a year earlier.

Financial activities, which had been a hot growth area in Miami-Dade, lost 800 jobs from May, leaving the annual gain in the county at less than a percentage point, 0.6%, with a gain of just 500 jobs over 12 months and 90,600 persons employed here in the sector. Statewide, financial jobs grew 2.4% for the year, gaining 16,000 positions.