As the economic recovery continues, short-term projections show strong employment growth in Connecticut, according to the Connecticut Economic Digest, a joint publication of the Department of Labor and Department of Economic and Community Development.
From 2020-2021, employment grew by 2.7% and the annual unemployment rate fell from 7.8% to 6.3%. As of March 2022, the state had recovered 81.8% of 289,000 jobs lost two years ago and employment was at 96.9% of February 2020 levels.
The goods sector is projected to grow by 7.9% through the second quarter of 2023, with most of that growth occurring in manufacturing, according to the report. The service sector, which represents 86.5% of industry employment in the state, is projected to grow by 6.6%.
The growth “suggests that the state will continue its current trend of monthly job growth and will approach pre-pandemic levels of industry employment by mid-2023,” the report says.
The two major sectors with the largest projected employment increases are arts, entertainment and recreation – projected to grow by 29.6% – and accommodation/food services, which is expected to see a 21.6% push. Both sectors were heavily impacted by the COVID pandemic.
The third largest sector growth is expected in transportation/warehousing.
Nearly every industry is projected to add jobs during the next two years. The only two sectors expected to lose jobs through 2023 are utilities, with a 2.5% decline, and finance/insurance, which is projected to decrease by 1.5%.
Overall employment, including self-employed and farm employment, is projected to grow by 118,839 or 6.9% from the first quarter of 2021 to the second quarter of 2023. Every occupational group is expected to add jobs during the period, with growth ranging from 3.2% for legal occupations to 18% for food preparation and serving.
Connecticut’s projected 2021-23 growth is higher than the northern New England states of Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire, but lower than Rhode Island and Vermont.
