Ohio Leads the Country
Posted byChris Thompson - 06.01.2010
Ohio is tops in the country when it comes to job growth.
Yes, you read that right. In April, Ohio added 37,300 jobs -- more than any other state in the union. As Jim Mackinnon of the Akron Beacon Journal reported last month, it's been a long time since that happened. And even manufacturing jobs were on the rise in April.
This encouraging sign that the Great Recession -- which wiped out nearly 400,000 jobs in Ohio -- is finally coming to an end and perhaps Ohio and the Midwest will lead the country to recovery. Earlier, I noted that much of the job growth in April was concentrated in Midwest cities, including Cleveland. And some of the economists see signs of progress for Ohio.
Of course the unemployment rates remain very high, but they are lower than the national average in five Northeast Ohio counties. And in Mahoning Valley, unemployment rates dropped sharply in April.
Backing up these encouraging statistics are a series of announcements by growing companies like U.S. Endoscopy -- which plans to add 150 jobs and -- and Exal Corp. of Youngstown, which is planning a $400 million expansion thanks to its cool new aluminum bottle.
Those are just two examples of the innovations that are transforming Northeast Ohio -- and helping Ohio lead the country.
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