When the last job numbers were counted for 2023, Connecticut added 22,700 jobs, which Labor Department data shows is less than the 26,800 it added in 2022.
“While there were month-to-month fluctuations, 2023 was a year of solid growth and low unemployment,” Patrick Flaherty, the Director of the CTDOL Office of Research, said. “More jobs added than any pre-pandemic period since 1999.”
The year ended with 3.8% unemployment, which is up slightly from the previous year. The final month of the year also saw a loss of approximately 2,500 jobs. These employment trends closely mirrored those of the previous year, with strong growth at the beginning of the year gradually slowing down towards the end.
“December was not a growth month, however, Connecticut’s economy remains strong and stable with employers having added an estimated 22,700 jobs this year,” Labor Commissioner Dante Bartolomeo said. “In 2022, we saw a similar pattern of months of strong early growth that tapered in late 2022 but produced strong early 2023 hiring. Overall, Connecticut’s unemployment rate remains very low and employers continue to hire across industry sectors.”
The state still has more job openings, 75,000, than it has in weekly unemployment filers – 30,000.
“Connecticut’s labor force—those working and those actively looking for work—declined another 14,300 people last year and is down 37,900 people since Feb. 2020,” CBIA President and CEO Chris DiPentima said. “We must attract more people to the state and that means renewed focus on making Connecticut a more attractive and affordable place to live and work.”
DiPentima called the numbers “a frustrating end to what really was a promising year for job growth.” “The job openings are here—we now have approximately 1.2 job openings for every unemployed person—what we need are the people to fill them,” DiPentima added.
