Jobs in Nevada Not Recovering

More jobs in Nevada (Click here) were lost last month, and even though the state's unemployment rate slightly decreased, officials believe that decline to be only temporary.

The Nevada Department of Employment, Training & Rehabilitation recently announced that the state's unemployment rate dropped from 13.3 percent to 13 percent during October. However, Gov. Jim Gibbons believes this is only a temporary decline and not a sign that Nevada's economy is actually improving.

"I would like to tell the citizens of Nevada we have seen the worst of the economic crisis and are seeing the fruits of recovery," he said. "The decline in unemployment has not been followed by an increase in the employment base. Clearly the federal stimulus dollars have been better at retaining existing jobs rather than creating new jobs."

Preliminary October reports from the Nevada Department of Taxation do not indicate an increase in the modified business tax, which is based on the number of employees in each location. If new jobs had been created, the modified business tax revenue would have increased.

In addition, the unemployment rate is actually expected to increase during November and December, in part because the long-awaited CityCenter will open, which will result in the loss of thousands of construction jobs.

"My office continues to receive reports from businesses who regretfully must implement additional employee layoffs," Gibbons added. "We are working diligently on all fronts to bring new businesses to Nevada and to develop a new renewable energy industry in Nevada to create green jobs. I will continue to fight for new jobs for Nevadans."

Nevada had a total non-farm employment of 1,174,800 workers during October, according to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is down from 1,179,700 workers during September and a 6 percent decrease from last year.