FORT LAUDERDALE (AP) – Florida’s unemployment rate jumped higher in May, hitting a record 14.5% as the state continued reeling from the economic shutdowns caused by the corona virus outbreak, statistics released Friday show.
Florida’s unemployment rate jumped slightly from the 13.8% figure in April. Before the coronavirus hit and devastated the state’s tourism, retail and other industries, February’s unemployment rate had been 2.8%. Florida has shed about 850,000 jobs compared to May 2019, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The national unemployment rate stood at 13.3% in May, a slight decrease from April, but up from 3.5% in February. The state and national figures are levels not seen since the Great Depression of the 1930s. Before the pandemic, the state’s post-World War II record for unemployment was 11.3%, set in early 2010.
