Sunshine Sentinel

Florida has shown a complete economic turnaround, with the state reporting that unemployment claims are the lowest they have been since the start of the pandemic, and business is improving as tourism numbers are on the rise.

The Florida Department of Labor and Employment recently reported an estimate of 5,343 first-time unemployment claims were filed in Florida during the week before Thanksgiving, ending Nov. 20. The average over the past four weeks is 6,045 claims. In a four-week period ending March 15, 2020, there was an average of 5,376 new claimants, according to clickorlando.com. According to the Department of Economic Opportunity, Florida’s seasonal adjusted unemployment rate was 4.6% for October, which was down 0.2 percentage points from September and 1.2 points from a year ago. 

“We have a great business environment for manufacturing,” Gov. Ron DeSantis said. “A lot of the places where manufacturing grew up many decades ago, have been more difficult to do business in.”

DeSantis also recently praised Florida’s third-quarter tourism figures, which were higher than 2019, according to ClickOrlando.com.

As previously reported by the Sunshine Sentinel, on Oct. 27 Christina Pushaw, spokeswoman for DeSantis, credited the governor with kicking the Florida economy into overdrive by opting out of the federal unemployment bonuses for those living in the state of Florida. 

"This is in no small part due to Gov. DeSantis ending the $300 weekly unemployment bonus months ahead of schedule, as the bonus accounted for more than half of Florida’s unemployment spending in late May,” Pushaw told the Sunshine Sentinel. “As the bonus ended, Floridians quickly began searching for work, creating an economic climate where small businesses could fill open positions and create more jobs. 

"The steady economic growth that Florida is witnessing is thanks to successful policies that put Floridians and businesses first," she said.

DeSantis said in November that last year analysts thought the state’s economy would be the most affected in the country because of tourism, but instead they are setting the pace for job creation and travel. 

“We have been able to set these records because in Florida we kept businesses open and made sure Floridians could keep working,” he said. “In just 15 months, Florida’s visitation numbers have surpassed past pre-pandemic levels, helping drive revenue, job growth, and economic activity to all 67 counties in our state.”

Pushaw said in an email that businesses do not have to fear another economic shutdown despite any worry surrounding the omicron coronavirus variant.

“I want to highlight that Gov. DeSantis has ruled out any new COVID restrictions for our state,” Pushaw said. “He was asked about this in the context of the omicron variant. Florida will not lock down or force businesses to close. Floridians will continue to be free to pursue their livelihoods. Instead of relying on heavy-handed government edicts that violate people’s rights, destroy the economy, and do not work to stop COVID-19, we are promoting early treatment and ensuring that everyone has access to vaccines if they choose to get vaccinated, which most Floridians have.”