Unemployment

Florida’s labor force has grown by more than half a million people since October.

An estimated 530,000 Floridians were out of work in July from a workforce of 10.48 million.

Florida’s June unemployment rate is up slightly from the month before. Statistics released by the state Friday show June's unemployment rate was rate 5%, up 0.1 percentage point from May.

The state’s unemployment rate now stands at 4.9% as some industries continue to report that people are slow to return to work.

An estimated 503,000 people qualified as unemployed in May, up from 488,000 a month earlier.

The Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association launched the free servicee to help laid off and furloughed people find work. About 600 businesses have already posted positions.

State and business officials have argued that the $300 a week in federal aid is keeping people from returning to jobs.

Millions who lost jobs at the beginning of the pandemic are still out of the labor force, making up levels of the unemployed not seen since the Great Recession.

Part of the reason is that tourists are next expected to flock to Florida in the coming months.

More than half of workers surveyed said they were reluctant to enforce COVID-19 safety measures with customers from whom they would receive tips, according to the One Fair Wage study.

U.S. employers added just 245,000 jobs last month as the runaway pandemic continued to weigh on hiring. The unemployment rate fell to 6.7% from 6.9% in October.

A bipartisan group of senators is proposing a nearly $908 billion compromise relief bill with millions of Americans about to fall off a cliff when benefits expire this month.