Where it matters most, in wages, workers are not seeing improvements even as the economy recorded its 83rd straight month of job growth. Corporate profits remain healthy.
Jobs & Unemployment
Flagler Unemployment Steady at 4.8%, Florida Adds 32,000 Jobs As Labor Force Grows
Compared to June, Flagler’s labor force didn’t budge, nor did the number of people with jobs, nor did the number of unemployed persons.
Economy Adds 209,000 Jobs in 82nd Straight Month of Growth, Unemployment at 4.3%
The unemployment rate was last this low in 2001, at the end of the Clinton boom, though wages have only recently started to improve at a pace ahead of inflation.
40% of Sea Ray Boats’ Workforce in Flagler Affected By Layoffs and Furloughs
Some 90 employees have been laid off and 130 furloughed out of a workforce of 560 at the Sea Ray Boats plant off Colbert Lane even as manufacturer’s parent company posts strong earnings in the second quarter.
Flagler Unemployment Ticks Up But Remains Below 5%, Florida’s Hits Post-Recession Low
Flagler County’s unemployment rate ticked up three decimal points to 4.8 percent in June as the labor force shrank a little and the unemployment rolls grew.
Flagler’s Unemployment Stays at 4.5% as Number of People With Jobs Hits Record 44,000
The number of unemployed persons–2,065–was essentially unchanged compared with April, but it’s down by 250 people from a year ago. The Florida unemployment rate fell to 4.3 percent.
CareerSource Flagler Volusia, Which Helps Unemployed, Will Lose 10% of Its Workforce
A $1 million cut to CareerSource’s budget is due to lower unemployment, but an agency official notes that underemployment remains a steep challenge, and further cuts may be on the way.
Prohibition-Era Liquor Wall Stays in Place as Gov. Scott Vetoes Bill to Deregulate Stores
ABC Fine Wine & Spirits and Publix win, Target, Costco and Walmart lose, as Gov. Scott, opposing deregulation, signs his first veto of the year.
Time Is Running Out For “Repeal and Replace” As Scandal and Summer Loom
Budget procedures, the fact that half the states’ legislatures have already adjourned is making it almost impossible for Congress to fit repeal of the Affordable Health Act just yet.
Flagler Unemployment Falls to New Post-Recession Low, Matching Florida’s 4.5%
In April, the number of the unemployed in Flagler County fell by almost 200, though the labor force shrank almost equally, and the overall number of Flagler County residents with jobs fell by 100.
11 Months After Fire, Dunkin Donuts On Palm Coast Parkway Reopens, With Sprinkles and 35 Employees
The Dunkin Donuts on Palm Coast Parkway reopens at 4 a.m. Thursday after it burned for reasons yet undetermined in June 2016, affecting about 1,000 customers a day.
Vacation-Rental Bills Die Only to Return in 2018, Forcing Flagler to Defend Regulations Again
The Legislature’s attempt to roll back local governments’ regulatory authority of vacation rentals barely fell short, so the fight is not over for counties at the forefront of the issue like Flagler.
David Ottati Returns: Ex-Florida Hospital Flagler CEO Takes Over 3-County Region
David Ottati’s rise in the Adventist organization is again bringing him to Flagler County as he takes over leadership of a seven hospital-region including Florida Hospital Flagler.
Badcock Furniture Will Fill Old Food Lion Space in Flagler Beach, Ending 8-Year Drought
Badcock Furniture will open in mid-summer in Flagler Square, as will a sweet shop, completing a remarkable revival of that commercial strip eight years after it had become a gaping hole for business.
Hitting New Post-Recession Low of 4.8%, Flagler’s Unemployment Now Matches Florida’s
The number of unemployed in Flagler county fell sharply in March, from 2,482 to 2,214, a drop of 268, an impressive 11 percent decline, with work activity especially pronounced in construction.
In Big Victory for Flagler Government, Feared Vacation-Rental Bill Suddenly in Retreat in Legislature
Flagler County’s vacation-rental regulations currently in place would be preserved according to a new version of a Senate bill the county had been fighting before. And a House bill may be dead.
New Starbucks Location Brewing Next to Aldi in the Shoppes of Palm Coast on SR100
A 2,200-square-foot Starbucks just got a development order and will soon rise next to Aldi, Gate gas station and Tractor Supply Co at Belle Terre and SR100.
Vacation-Rental Bill Hearing Rescheduled Just as Key Senate Committee Begins Debate
Sen. Tom Lee, the seasoned chairman of the Community Affairs Committee, didn’t ant the bill rushed through debate, as had been the case on a previous occasion before Sen. Travis Hutson.
Flagler Unemployment Down to 5.3% As 1,150 More Local Residents Gain Jobs in 2 Months
Flagler County’s unemployment in February fell sharply again, to 5.3 percent from 6 percent the previous month, even as the labor force in the county surged for the second month in a row, to just under 46,000–a record–as did the number of residents holding jobs.
Unemployment Spikes to 6% in Flagler, Highest in 15 Months, But Labor Force Also Grows
While Flagler County’s number of unemployed grew by 11 percent month-over-month, the county also saw a very large increase of 600 people in its workforce, pointing to optimism about the county’s climate.
Lopsided House Votes To Abolish Enterprise Florida and Economic Development Limbs
The House also voted 80-35 to approve a separate measure (HB 9) that would overhaul the structure and contract-reporting requirements of Visit Florida.
U.S. Economy Adds 235,000 Jobs,
Continuing Long Pace of Robust Growth
The unemployment rate fell to 4.7 percent, not quite the post-Great Recession low of 4.6 percent recorded last November, but close enough.
Superwash Express Brings 40 Jobs to Heart of Palm Coast and Lava of Choices For Car Care
Superwash on Cypress Point Parkway held its grand opening last week, creating 40 new jobs, about 25 of them full-time, in a car town that seems to take to carwashes with zeal.
Renner Is Right: Kill Enterprise Florida and Visit Florida, Twin Kleptos of Public Troth
Enterprise Florida and Visit Florida are two tax-supported state agencies that act more like slush funds, wasting money behind secretive veils and returns on investment that have never lived up to the promise.
Flagler Unemployment Rate Ticks Up for 4th Month in a Row, to 5.7%, Florida’s Up to 4.9%
The streak in increasing unemployment is echoed by an equally suggestive streak: five straight declines in the number of house sales closing in Flagler County, going back to May’s post-recession peak of 259 sales.
Florida Chamber of Commerce and Business Groups File Suit Against Plan to Raise Minimum Wage
The chamber of commerce joined a retail and a restaurant association to fight a groundbreaking living wage plan adopted in Miami Beach, which could serve as a model for other local governments.
Palm Coast Council Talks As If It Wants To Be Pioneer in Medical Pot, But Post-Moratorium
In a radical departure from its previous incarnations, the Palm Coast City Council discussed medical marijuana in terms of economic development potential for the city as well as in line with its purported humane benefits.
Child Care Subsidies, Vital for Many Working Poor, Are Dwindling to 20-Year Lows
In 2014, the number of children receiving subsidies fell to its lowest level since 1998. Subsidies may fall further as states implement tougher licensing standards for child care centers.
Economy Adds 178,000 Jobs in November, 4.6% Unemployment at Lowest Level in 9 Years
It’s the longest job-creation streak in the nation’s history, but wages dropped in October by 0.1 percent and the decline in the unemployment rate was due more to a decline in the labor force than because of job creation.
Along Palm Coast Parkway, Yet Another Tattoo Parlor, and Yet Another Assisted Living Facility
The two businesses may add upwards of 50 jobs in the city’s core commercial center along Palm Coast Parkway—an assisted living facility for dementia patients, and at least the third tattoo studio along the Parkway approved in recent years.
Revenge of the Forgotten Class
Hillary Clinton and the Democrats were playing with fire when they effectively wrote off white workers in the small towns and cities of the Rust Belt.
161,000 Jobs Created in October, Unemployment at 4.9%, Earnings Up at Fastest Pace Since 2008
The last jobs report before Election Day adds to a string of positive economic results, netting 1.8 million jobs so far this year and the second month in a row of strong earnings increases.
Flagler Job Holders and Workforce Surge By 400 in September as Unemployment Flattens
This is one of those unemployment report where the uptick in the unemployment rate is almost meaningless, compared to other numbers, at least as far as Flagler County’s economy is concerned.
Damaged State Road A1A in Flagler Beach Will Re-Open as 2-Lane Road in 3 to 4 Months
The two-lane road will be an emergency fix, with narrower lanes, a barrier wall on the ocean side, and a speed limit lowered to 25 mph, but it will be a boon to businesses that continue to be ravaged by its current closure.
Responsibly Raised: Chipotle Mexican Grill Seeks Site Next to Panera in Palm Coast
Chipotle Mexican Grill’s restaurant would go up on State Road 100 in Palm Coast as the company continues to expand after weathering a severe blow from a rash of food poisonings contracted at its restaurants in the West and Midwest last year.
FEMA Finally Broadens Emergency Declaration to Include Homeowners; Flagler Beach Re-Opens Beaches Wednesday
FEMA’s declaration will let homeowners claim up to $33,000 in repair or recovery expenses attributed to Hurricane Matthew. The beaches in Flagler Beach will reopen from North 4th Street to South 8th Street on Wednesday, and go further after the weekend.
16 Years, 3 Generals and a Water War Later, Army National Guard Center Breaks Ground at Flagler Airport
The new National Guard center will house 30 to 40 people and a revolving corps of 100 to 200 weekend reservists, the equivalent of a significant new company’s economic impact. And this one won’t go under or go back on its promises.
Flagler’s Unemployment Back Down to 5.4% After Brief Rise, Florida’s at 4.7% for 4th Month
When Florida’s under-employed and discouraged workers are included, the state’s unemployment rate zooms up to 10.6 percent, higher than the national rate of 9.6 percent.
What Slowdown? Jobs Surge to 255,000 in July, Wages Jump, Unemployment at 4.9%
June and July’s numbers have surged again, with 292,000 new jobs in June and 255,000 in July, bringing the year’s total to 1.3 million new jobs, and keeping the unemployment rate at 4.9 percent.
Amazon to Open 1,500-Job Fulfillment Center in Jacksonville, 3rd in Florida
A day after announcing the opening of a 750,000 square-foot shipping center in Romeoville, Ill., Amazon today announced it would open a slightly larger fulfillment center in Jacksonville, employing some 1,500 people. It will be the third Amazon center in Florida. Centers in Lakeland and Ruskin employ a combined 3,000 people.
Flagler’s 5.1% Unemployment Nearly Matches U.S. Rate Even as Jobs and Labor Force Dip
Flagler’s unemployment rate has fallen a full percentage point in a year, and is down from 8.3 percent two years ago. The rate went down even though 179 fewer people held jobs in April, because the labor force shrank by a larger number.
In Palm Coast’s Expensive Hunt for New Retailers, a Few Leads, But Only Low Wages
Last July Palm Coast government signed a $135,000, contract with marketing company to recruit retailers. Nine months later, a couple of low-wage retailers are possible, and a half dozen more are long-term possibilities, but nothing more firm than that.
Gate Gas and Aldi Grocery Will Rise at Corner of SR100 and Belle Terre, Ending Political Signs
The Palm Coast City Council approved a redrawing of the property into six lots, three of which are under contract, with two projected for non-fast-food restaurants in the future.
Flagler’s Unemployment Ticks Down to New Post-Recession Low of 5.3% as Employment Surges
In March, strong job growth continued in Flagler County with a gain of 396 for a two-month gain of 868 jobs–numbers not seen since before the Great Recession. Florida’s unemployment rate fell to 4.9 percent.
Nurse Assistants at Grand Oaks Rehab Strike for $15/hr Wage in Echo of National Movement
Workers at Grand Oaks Rehab Center in Palm Coast, most on poverty wages, walked out for 24 hours, though they’d given the facility almost two weeks’ notice and replacements ensured no residents lacked care.
Economy Adds 215,000 Jobs But Unemployment Rises to 5% As Workers Flood Back
The more accurate, so-called U-6 unemployment rate, which includes part-time and discouraged workers, places unemployment and underemployment at 9.8 percent, and 11.5 percent in Florida.
Behind Florida’s Deceptively Low Unemployment Rate
The labor force participation rate should always be taken into account when determining the overall state of the job market and the economy, and that rate has fallen significantly since the Great Recession, argues Dominic Calabro.
Florida’s 4.9% Unemployment Rate Matches Nation’s, Flagler’s Nearly There, at 5.4%
The number of Flagler County residents holding jobs surged by 472, one of the best single-month increases since the recession, lowering the county’s unemployment rate to its lowest level since 2007.
Flagler Unemployment Ticks Up To 5.8% in January, Florida’s at 5%
The number of Flagler County residents with jobs has increased from 27,652 in March 2010 to 41,053 in January–an increase of 13,401, or 48 percent.
U.S. Economy Adds Robust 242,000 Jobs, Leaving Unemployment Rate at 4.9%
After a relatively weaker December, when only 172,000 jobs were created, the job market resumed the late 1990s-like pace it has maintained for most of the past two years.