325,000 New Jobs Expected By 2022 in Arizona
A bit of good news for the economic future of Arizona came in this past week, as the state is set to regain many jobs that were lost during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity recently reported a strong job growth projection in the state of Arizona over the next couple of years. This job growth represents some of the largest gains Arizona has seen since the many industries were hit hard by the pandemic.
Governor Doug Ducey said, “Arizona is a place where opportunities are plentiful and jobs are growing. Families and businesses from across the nation continue to choose Arizona, and it’s resulting in greater employment opportunities for existing residents and newcomers. Arizona is resilient — and these job projections prove it.”
Job Growth Projections
In the Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity report, statistics showed that Arizona was in line to receive more than 325,000 jobs between the Spring of 2020 and Spring of 2021, representing an annual growth rate of more than 5.5%. The job growth will take place in 15 of the state’s counties and throughout all of the major sectors except for the government sector.
The leisure and hospitality sector in Arizona took the hardest hit during the pandemic, though many expect that it will bounce back with a 12.8% annual growth rate. The sector is set to receive around 69,900 jobs, which accounts for more jobs than in any sector.
Second in line is the state’s manufacturing sector, which is set to receive a 3.1% annual growth rate with more than 10,000 new jobs.
Garrick Taylor, Arizona’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry Intermin President and CEO says, “obs are available and employers are ready to hire. The projected growth over the next few years is a result of Arizona’s smart policies and welcoming business climate — and we need to keep it up. My thanks to Governor Ducey for focusing on job growth, supporting businesses, and protecting the workforce.”
The Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity Makes A Focused Effort
The Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity, a branch of the Arizona Commerce Authority, just recently celebrated a decade-long anniversary. Many business leaders throughout the Phoenix area collaborated on a guest opinion in the Arizona Republic, stating that the economic growth in the state was thanks to the focused effort of the Economic Opportunity branch over the last six years.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, from July 2019 to July 2020, the population of Arizona grew by 129,600 people.
Governor Ducey signed an Executive Order on February 12 to limit inhibited job growth through government regulations by renewing a moratorium on all new regulatory rulemaking from state agencies. 462 rules were either improved or eliminated across 26 different agencies in 2020, according to the Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity. These changes resulted in next to $14.7 million in annual savings for the Arizona economy.
Some of the other jobs set to rebound include those in warehousing and retail, much of which will stem from the uptick in online orders. The sector that is set to return the slowest is government.
