Fewer Working-Age Rhode Islanders Have Jobs Under Dem Gov Gina Raimondo

Despite all her phony talk about focusing on creating jobs, failed Democrat governor Gina Raimondo’s leadership continues to leave Rhode Islanders worse off. New numbers from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show that fewer working-age Rhode Islanders had jobs in 2016 after Gina Raimondo’s first full year as governor than the year before. These numbers come after it was reported that the state lost jobs this April for the second consecutive month under Raimondo.

WPRI-TV reports:

“The employment rate for Rhode Islanders ages 25 to 54 was 77.8% in 2016, down from 78.9% in 2015, the bureau said. For that group of adults, classified as prime working age, the employment rate remains well below the levels reached during the previous two economic recoveries: 82.6% in 2007 and 83.3% in 1999.

Gov. Gina Raimondo often cites as a sign of Rhode Island’s economic momentum the sharp drop in the state’s unemployment rate, which has declined from a high of 11.3% in the summer of 2009 to just 4.3% last month. But the federal numbers also suggest the current recovery has not had the same effects as prior ones. 

The last two times Rhode Island’s unemployment rate fell below 5%, the data shows, more than 80% of 25- to 54-year-old residents were employed, versus less than 78% last year. Another way to look at it: among prime working-age Rhode Islanders, an average of 323,000 were employed in 2016, compared with 374,000 in 2007 and 349,000 in 1999…

The size of Rhode Island’s prime working-age population – employed or otherwise – is also about 10% smaller than it was a decade ago, declining from 462,000 in 2006 to 415,000 in 2016, according to the federal data. The number of residents ages 55 and older has jumped 31% over the same period, from 247,000 to 323,000.”

With Rhode Island losing vital jobs and continuing to decline to the bottom ten in state business rankings, the evidence continues to pile up that Gina Raimondo’s failed policies are leaving the state economically stagnant as it falls further behind. Rhode Islanders deserve a governor who will work tirelessly to expand opportunity and spur job growth, unfortunately Gina Raimondo is too busy distorting the record with phony numbers to bolster her reelection chances for 2018.