Columbus, OH – Rea S. Hederman Jr., executive director of the Economic Research Center and vice president of policy at The Buckeye Institute, commented on the newly released jobs report from the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. 

“Ohio’s October jobs report shows concerning signs with more Ohioans unemployed and fewer Ohioans looking for work. The unemployment rate increased to 4.2 percent—up from four percent—and the labor force participation rate dropped to 61.5 percent—down from 61.7 percent. While Ohio continues to lag the nation, the state’s jobs report reflects a national trend of growing unemployment and falling labor force participation.

“The payroll survey tells a significantly different story, one of a growing job market. Ohio added 10,400 private-sector jobs in October, and September’s report—which initially reported a loss of 6,200 private-sector jobs—was revised and now shows the addition of 7,000 jobs, half of which were in the hotel and restaurant service sector. 

“It is not unusual for the two surveys that make up the jobs report to paint different pictures of Ohio’s job market in any given month, and revisions are sometimes quite significant. However, the two surveys tell the same story when we look at the trend over the past few months—Ohio’s job market has slowed in the second half of 2022, with fewer Ohioans looking for work and a lower rate of private-sector job growth.

“The next General Assembly will take their seats in early 2023 and begin work on Ohio’s next biennial budget. With state tax receipts exceeding projections and a healthy budget surplus, Ohio lawmakers should prioritize meaningful tax reform that will incentivize Ohioans to invest in business opportunities and encourage families and businesses to relocate from high-tax states and make the Buckeye State their home.”

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