Monday, July 25, 2016 • Financial News & Daily Record • Page A-11
Unemployment up, but Literacy job market trend positive Continued from front page
By Mark Basch Contributing Writer Jacksonville’s unemployment rate jumped higher in June, but the overall trend in the labor market remains positive. The unemployment rate in the Jacksonville metropolitan area — consisting of Duval, Baker, Clay, Nassau and St. Johns counties — rose from 4.1 percent in May to 4.7 percent in June, the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity reported Friday. That’s a normal seasonal trend in June as new college and high school graduates enter the labor force for the first time and are unable to find jobs. The Department of Economic Opportunity does not adjust the Jacksonville data for seasonal factors. However, according to the University of North Florida’s Local Economic Indicators Project, even when the data is seasonally adjusted it still shows an increase in the area’s unemployment rate from 4.26 percent in May to 4.45 percent in June. Despite the increase in June, the labor market data this year
Loh has been mostly good. UNF economist Albert Loh said the low rate in May might have “painted too rosy of a picture” and could be an anomaly. “If we ignore what happened in May, we are still in a steady decline” in the unemployment rate, he said. Duval County’s unemployment rate also rose sharply from 4.4 percent in May to 5 percent last month, without seasonal adjustment, the Department of
Economic Opportunity said. LEIP reported even after seasonal adjustment, the county’s jobless rate rose from 4.27 percent to 4.79 percent. Florida’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.7 percent last month, the Department of Economic Opportunity said. A separate survey by the state agency showed job growth in the Jacksonville area was strong at 3.6 percent in June, with 23,100 jobs added to business payrolls in the previous 12 months. That beat Florida’s statewide growth rate of 3 percent. Every major business sector grew jobs over the past year except the information sector, both statewide and in the Jacksonville area. Information sector jobs dropped by 2.2 percent in Jacksonville and 1.5 percent in Florida. The strongest growth in the Jacksonville area came in construction and the transportation, warehouse and utilities sector, both up 6.8 percent. mbasch@baileypub.com
The Jacksonville Transportation Authority on Friday celebrated the opening of the Soutel Transit Hub. The facility will connect two routes and features shelters with amenities such as benches, ticket vending machines and bike racks. The project also included an extension and improvements of Linda Lane from Sibbald Road to Soutel Drive. Friday’s ceremony included a ribbon-cutting that featured, from left, JTA CEO Nathaniel Ford; King Holzendorf; JTA board members Ari Jolly and Isaiah Rumlin; City Council members Reggie Brown and Sam Newby; state Rep. Mia Jones; and council member Katrina Brown.
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JTA launches Northside transit hub
commission CEO Jon Heymann. The failure to properly administer and monitor the program, Gentry said in the letter, means the children, the city and Journey all have been deprived. “I am profoundly disappointed and disturbed that this important program has been undermined,” the letter went on to say. Heymann by text Friday evening said the commission will take a “serious look” at the concerns in Gentry’s letter. Gentry laid out what he expected in his letter. That included: • All vendors should purchase and deliver books and book bags early this week, so at least some benefit can be obtained. The programs are in their sixth of seven weeks. • A breakdown of which programs provided books to each child and whether the vendors implemented curriculum that was designed by the University of North Florida. Each of the vendors had training at the school before the program began. • How many children each camp has served compared to the number contracted. • Delivery of book bags that also were part of part of the program, but have yet to be delivered. Gentry wants them there for the kids. Until then, Gentry said in his letter, payment should be withheld to any providers who didn’t comply with the contract. The issue is so critical, Gentry said Friday, because the Journey is about helping children and on performance-based evaluations. Without those metrics, there’s nothing to review.
dchapman@jaxdailyrecord.com (904) 356-2466
Wasserman Schultz will leave DNC role
By Jim Saunders The News Service of Florida
After months of controversy about her role in the party’s presidential primaries, Florida Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz announced Sunday she will step down as chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee. Wasserman Schultz’s resignation is effective after the Democratic National Convention, which starts today in Philadelphia. The announcement came after the disclosure Friday by WikiLeaks of internal party emails that added new fuel to criticism that Wasserman Schultz aided ultimate nominee Hillary Clinton in the presidential primaries against U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont. In a statement that splashed Sunday across national media websites, Wasserman Schultz said she would open and close the convention and address delegates about “the stakes involved in this election not only for Democrats, but for all Americans.” Luis Miranda, a spokesman for the Democratic National Committee, said on Twitter that party
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“We expect people to perform to contracts,” Gentry said later. “That’s not what was happening … We’re going to get it right.” He said he hopes to have all the details this week. The program is one of many facets of the Journey anti-crime initiative, part of the larger push for public safety by Mayor Lenny Curry. After years of cuts, Curry’s first budget provided Journey programs about $3 million in additional funding to a total of about $5 million. His proposed budget for next year includes the same amount. Kerri Stewart, Curry’s chief of staff, on Friday said Gentry made the administration aware of the situation and she is glad Gentry has taken an active role in oversight. She echoed his sentiments about the need for performance data and wanted to see the commission’s response to the concerns. City Council President Lori Boyer this year initially had concerns about various pools of money going toward summer camps. Those concerns led to the Journey and Children’s Commission partnering for the literacy camps. Boyer said Gentry’s letter contained some “pretty serious accusations” that give her great concern, if true. “These are kids who are often behind in school,” said Boyer. “If we are going to pay for the summer camps, we don’t want them to fall behind.”
Vice Chairwoman Donna Brazile, a longtime Democratic leader and operative, will serve as interim chair through the election. Sanders, who is scheduled to speak Monday night at the convention, posted a statement on Twitter saying Wasserman Schultz had “made the right decision for the future of the Democratic Party” by resigning. Clinton issued a statement saying Wasserman Schultz will serve as “honorary chair of my campaign’s 50-state program to gain ground and elect Democrats in every part of the country and will continue to serve as a surrogate for my campaign nationally, in Florida and in other key states.” Wasserman Schultz, who is from the Broward County city of Weston, has been a fixture in state Democratic politics for more than two decades and became chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee in 2011. She faces an Aug. 30 primaryelection challenge for her congressional seat from Tim Canova, who has been backed by Sanders. Clinton indicated in her statement that she will try to help Wasserman Schultz fend off the challenge.