West Virginia Governor's Office issued the following announcement on Dec. 14.
Gov. Jim Justice announced that West Virginia’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased to 4.0% for November 2021; the lowest such rate recorded in all of state history.
November’s mark bested the previous state record of 4.3%, set just one month prior in October 2021.
“The net-net of the whole thing is that there’s never been a better time for jobs in the state of West Virginia than there is right now,” Gov. Justice said. “We want to continue to grow on this and attract anybody and everybody to come to this state.”
The state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate has now decreased for 19 straight months.
For the 9th straight month, West Virginia’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remains better than the national unemployment rate.
The number of unemployed state residents decreased by 2,800 in November, while total employment grew 1,700 over the month.
Additionally, for the 3rd time in as many months, West Virginia has set an all-time state record-low not seasonally adjusted unemployment rate, dropping to 2.6% in November.
“There’s no human way that I could be more proud of this,” Gov. Justice said. “West Virginia is absolutely killing it; doing absolutely fantastic.
“We know there’s all kinds more to do. There’s people out there that are still really hurting, and we’re trying in every way we possibly can to reach everyone. But this is really good stuff,” Gov. Justice continued. “Lots of people have had to push the right buttons. We made West Virginia more business friendly, we stood by our energy industry, we made historic investments in tourism and broadband, we revamped our whole transportation infrastructure through Roads to Prosperity, we all pulled the rope together and stayed together during this terrible pandemic, and we continue to try to make good, sound decisions as we continue to pump out surpluses that will enable us to do more and more goodness in West Virginia.
“There’s so much more right in front of us. But boy, I’ll tell you, it’s really been a wonderful turnaround and absolutely wonderful ride.
Under Gov. Justice’s leadership, West Virginia continues to enjoy an unprecedented era of success and prosperity.
After inheriting a $500 million budget deficit, Gov. Justice has led the state to a string of consistent budget surpluses by using his lifelong experience as a businessman to make West Virginia a more business-friendly state and by standing behind the energy industry. Last month, West Virginia recorded a $88 million revenue surplus, bringing the total fiscal year surplus to $269 million in just five months.
During the month of October West Virginia also cracked the top 10 states in the nation for quarterly GDP growth and set an all-time state record-low unemployment rate.
Additionally, the Governor’s Roads to Prosperity program is the state’s largest-ever investment in road maintenance and improvement; after 50 years of neglecting its roads, the state has committed more than $2 billion dollars to fixing them. Teachers and state employees have received their two largest pay raises ever. The state’s Rainy Day Fund now exceeds $1 billion – another record – and its public pension funds are better-funded than they have been in decades. Thanks to Gov. Justice, Veterans now live in West Virginia tax-free and senior citizens do not face state taxes on social security. The Governor has also led West Virginia through a once-in-a-century pandemic, protecting the state’s most vulnerable citizens. Additionally, increased investments in the state’s tourism efforts have visitation and intrigue in West Virginia through the roof. West Virginia was recently named a top-10 travel region in the world to visit by Lonely Planet; the only state to earn this prestigious distinction and the state was also recently selected as one of the Best Places to Go by Condé Nast Traveler.
Original source can be found here.
