The Florida Department of Labor estimated a 4.2% unemployment rate for Duval County in 2005. No evidence suggests that the racial disparities measured in 2000 have changed significantly. Unemployment is tied directly to poverty and, as shown in Map 5, high rates of poverty are concentrated in Jacksonville’s urban core neighborhoods. Map 5 Percentage of Persons Below Poverty by Census Tract, 1999
Source: U.S. Census Bureau There are many reasons why vacant jobs go unfilled in a tight labor market. Some attribute the inability of the unemployed or underemployed to find suitable work to their lack of educational attainment, work skills, and work ethic that make them unqualified to get or keep a job. Some qualified workers lack access to the public or private transportation needed to reach available living wage jobs. Others have criminal records that bar them from some occupations altogether and make them unemployable in other positions (e.g., convicted felons cannot work on certain government contracts or associate with other felons). Unemployment and underemployment, coupled with job discrimination (both real and imagined), play into the frustration of many. When legitimate economic opportunities are beyond reach or unattractive to potential workers, some turn to crime, especially robbery and illegal drug sales, for survival. Robbery is associated with 19 percent of murders in Jacksonville, and the selling of illegal drugs contributes to violence that frequently leads to murder. Small neighborhood businesses play a vital role in providing economic opportunity through accessible, entry-level jobs. They improve neighborhood dynamics by creating social and economic connections among the residents. Community resources, such as the Small Business Center at the Chamber of Commerce, encourage neighborhood business
38