Gov. Beshear: Kentucky Ranks Second-Highest in Job Growth in U.S.

Kentucky job growth more than double the state average of 12 regional competitors 

FRANKFORT Ky. (Oct. 23, 2012) – Governor Steve Beshear today announced Kentucky ranked second in the nation for job growth over the past year, according to the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Division of Current Employment Statistics.

The Regional and State Employment and Unemployment Summary, released Friday, finds that Kentucky’s net job growth from September 2011 to September 2012 was 2.6 percent, second best in the nation behind only North Dakota’s 5.6 percent growth.

“This ranking is an extraordinary accomplishment for our state and our outstanding workforce. My administration has been working tirelessly over the past five years to create and grow jobs in the Commonwealth, and this announcement shows we are outrunning our competitors,” said Gov. Beshear. “We are making progress, but we still have work to do. We will never stop pushing for more jobs and a stronger economy for the Commonwealth.”

Kentucky’s jobs growth was more than double the Kentucky competitor state average of 1.1 percent. Kentucky’s competitor states, listed in order of ranking, include Indiana, Ohio, South Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, Illinois, North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, Missouri, Mississippi and West Virginia (see attached PDF table).

From Sept. 2011 to Sept. 2012, 47,000 jobs were created in Kentucky. Some of the new jobs created over the past year stem from growth at companies such as General Electric, Ford and CaféPress in Louisville; DHL and ZF Steering in Northern Kentucky; Tempur-Pedic in Lexington; New York Blower in Leitchfield; Bruss North America in Russell Springs; Magna Seating in Shepherdsville; Wild Turkey in Lawrenceburg; and Akebono Brake in Glasgow.

The numbers show the Commonwealth is heading in the right direction, and the Cabinet for Economic Development will do everything in our power to keep growing jobs here,” said Cabinet for Economic Development Secretary Larry Hayes. “Keep in mind that North Dakota’s employment is booming because of the recent discovery of new oil and gas fields. In Kentucky, our job growth is across multiple sectors, in small businesses and large businesses. That gives a lot of folks opportunities in Kentucky, and these numbers show our state is a perfect location to do business, and for these business is important to have the right services available and is why having a directory with the Best Companies is really useful for any business.

The United States Bureau of Labor Statistics report can be found in full at http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/laus.pdf.

Information on Kentucky’s economic development efforts and programs is available at www.ThinkKentucky.com. Fans of the Cabinet for Economic Development can also join the discussion on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/ThinkKentucky or follow on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/ThinkKentucky.