Connecticut has next to the worst job growth in the nation. That’s according to new figures released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The figures show that Connecticut has a negative job growth of -5%. Only Louisiana has a worse number.
Neighboring states New York, Rhode Island and Massachusetts led the U.S. in job growth.
UConn economist Fred Carstensen says this has an effect on Connecticut’s job numbers.
“Because we’ve had a surge in the number of people who live in Connecticut but work in Rhode Island, New York, Massachusetts and New Jersey. They work out of state.”
Carstensen says economic growth in Connecticut has shrunk to the level it was in 2005. He says that’s because of the collapse of several sectors, like the manufacture of pharmaceuticals.
“We lost nearly 75% of that sector. It really collapsed. We also saw a large contraction in insurance and finance. We’ve seen a lot of those jobs actually migrate to New York.”
He says the situation could be turned around if the state focuses on building a high tech hub anchored by its major research universities, Yale and UConn.
