News and Press Releases for November 2006

Back to November 2006 Releases

11/21/2006

Gov. Sanford Issues Statement on Unemployment Rate

Columbia, S.C. - Governor Mark Sanford today issued the following statement on the state's unemployment rate:

"While we remain focused on making sure that there are jobs available for any South Carolinian who's willing to work, there continue to be encouraging signs that our economy is moving in the right direction," Gov. Sanford said. "This month's report moves the number of people working in South Carolina to almost 140,000 more than when we took office in 2003, when South Carolina was losing jobs. Not only are there more people working in our state than ever before, but we continue to have growth in the number of small businesses in our state, and the Department of Commerce is on pace for another record-setting year. Add to that the fact that state economists are predicting another strong year of revenue growth, and you've got a much fuller picture of the state of our economy. Improving on that progress means continuing to better the soil conditions for businesses here in our state with changes like workers' comp reform, which will be one of our top goals in the coming legislative session."

According to Wachovia Senior Economist Mark Vitner's Regional Economic Review, South Carolina's Gross State Product grew at 6.3 percent in the second quarter of 2006 -- the fastest rate of growth in the Southeast, the fifth-fastest in the nation, and more than twice the national rate of 2.5 percent growth. Officials with the state Employment Security Commission have said that roughly half of the state's unemployment rate is due to new job seekers who are entering the labor market largely because they're encouraged by positive economic trends.