Wisconsin Job Growth Slows In Latest Detailed Employment Numbers

Job creation slowed in Wisconsin during the 12-month period ending in September of last year, according to the latest “gold standard” employment numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

But despite the lull, Wisconsin still ranked near the middle of the pack in private sector job growth.

The numbers come from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, which economists regard as the most accurate job metric.

They show that from September 2016 until September 2017, Wisconsin added 17,670 private sector jobs.

That’s considerably less than in previous years. For example, Wisconsin added 27,289 private sector jobs during the same period a year ago and 34,551 the year before that.

But even with the decline, Wisconsin’s 0.7 percent private sector job growth rate ranked 31st in the nation because hiring slowed in other states, too. Wisconsin frequently ranks somewhere in the low- to mid-30s in private sector job growth. It ranked 32nd when these numbers were released in 2017.

Thursday’s numbers, coupled with Wisconsin’s historically low 3 percent unemployment rate, show that while the state’s private sector economy is not expanding quickly, most residents who want a job have one.

The latest numbers also show Wisconsin added 4,616 private sector manufacturing jobs from September 2016 through September 2017. That’s an improvement from the same period a year ago when Wisconsin lost manufacturing jobs.