The month of May might as well be summer in Southwest Florida, marking a slower time for the region’s economy, but the latest jobs data didn’t get the memo.
The unemployment rate in four counties in the five-county region remained the same from April, a sign of strength in the area’s workforce heading into the historically slower summer months.
The latest data was released Friday by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity.
Collier County led the way in May with 3.1 percent unemployment, the same as April and down from 3.7 percent a year ago.
Lee County followed suit, posting 3.2 percent in May and April, down from 3.9 percent a year ago.
Charlotte and Glades counties each tallied 3.7 percent in May and April. Charlotte’s rate was 4.6 percent a year ago, while Glades’ rate was 4.5 percent a year ago.
Hendry County tied with Sumter County in May for the highest unemployment rate in the state at 5 percent. Hendry’s rate was 4.7 percent in April and 6.4 percent a year ago.
Jim Wall, spokesman for CareerSource Southwest Florida, which connects employers and job seekers, called the steady rate at this time of year “new, uncharted territory.”
While season generally runs from November through Easter, May tends to be the beginning of the rate’s uptick through the summer.
“We’re holding steady,” he said. “Under 4 percent in four of the counties, that’s full employment,” meaning anyone who desires work can get it.
“Businesses are maintaining the workforce they had during season,” he said. “Still, it’s time to wait and see as new jobs reports come out during the summer months.”
While low unemployment typically puts pressure on wages, Wall said he has observed employers turning to bonuses rather than wage increases.
“The trend is to go to one-time bonuses,” he said. “We are seeing more bonuses and incentive money rather than wages increasing.”
Littlejoe Hayes, president of the Florida division for R.T. Moore mechanical contractors, participated in a CareerSource-sponsored job fair Thursday in Fort Myers, attended by 150 people.
“I’ve got to add 20 people in the next week and I’ll still have a need,” he said. “I need to on-board 70 to 80 employees by the end of the year, from entry level to upper management.”
The need for some roles is so intense that the company offers its own apprenticeship program, which includes teaching residential plumbing installation.
“People can start out with no experience and go through our six-month training program,” Hayes said. “Overall, we have a dire need for experienced plumbers, superintendents and project managers.”
A first-year employee starting out with no experience could expect to earn $30,000 to $40,000 that first year “and it will increase every year as their experience builds.” The average crew leader, for example, earns $70,000-$85,000 a year.
R.T. Moore, which started in 1955 and is based in Indianapolis, started its Florida division in 2004. It has offices in Fort Myers and Bradenton, working from Tampa to Marco Island. It employs 175 people in Florida and 550 in all.
Construction workers fled the state or turned to other work during the Great Recession a decade ago. The industry has had a tough time finding enough workers during the recovery.
“What’s really impacted the trades in the construction business is with the young people,” Hayes said. “A generation and a half have been told, ‘You’ve got to go to college. If you don’t, you’re not going to make anything.’ It’s really unfortunate.”
Christopher Westley, director of the Regional Economic Research Institute at FGCU, noted the past two months mark the lowest unemployment rate for Collier since April 2007 and the lowest rate for Lee since December 2006.
“I think we’re in an inflationary boom, just like we were then,” he said. “The low period during that time when we were overheating lasted for over a year.”
Westley pointed out just how consistent the unemployment rate was from April to May. It fell by six people in Collier and increased by three people in Lee.
“There’s hardly any change from month to month overall,” he said. “Leisure and hospitality fell in both counties, but they’re being countered by construction growth. That’s especially the case in Collier. In Lee, that’s being countered by retail.”
Mike Chura, vice president of operations for Naples-based Ford Drywall & Stucco, also participated in Thursday’s construction job fair. The company employs 550 people.
“We could hire 200 people for the amount of work coming down the pipe right now,” he said.
The company is working on many large projects, including on the expansion of Gulf Coast Medical Center in south Fort Myers. It works from Tampa to Naples and Daytona Beach to Miami.
“We have a very strong need from labor positions to framing to drywall hangars and finishers, stucco applicators, water proofers,” he said. “It’s really a challenging market out there. There’s just not enough qualified people. It reminds me of 2003, when the demand started really accelerating straight up.”
To fill demand, Ford Drywall & Stucco is “constantly training.” It aims to find people by working with CareerSource, placing ads in local papers and through word-of-mouth, as well as using headhunters and working with technical colleges.
Pay for entry-level laborers ranges from $12 to $14 per hour, with framers and drywall workers in the $14 to $18 range and stucco applicators earning $16 to $20 hourly. Crew leaders, or foremen, make $20 to $35 per hour based on their skill set and experience.
“We’re always willing to train,” Chura said. “We look for the folks that are motivated. If we observe them to have an aptitude for the trades, they will move faster forward than some of the others.”
Florida’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.8 percent in May, down 0.1 percentage point from the April rate, and down 0.4 percentage point from a year ago. There were 391,000 jobless Floridians out of a labor force of 10.2 million. The U.S. unemployment rate was 3.8 percent in May.
Florida’s seasonally adjusted total nonagricultural employment was 8,746,800 in May, an increase of 15,100 jobs over the month. The state gained 180,200 jobs over the year, an increase of 2.1 percent. Nationally, the number of jobs rose 1.6 percent over the year.
Collier County was among the three areas in the state losing jobs over the year. It led the state in that category, losing 2,400 jobs.
The industries that gained jobs over the year in the region: mining, logging, and construction (900 jobs); financial activities (900 jobs); education and health services (700 jobs); and trade, transportation, and utilities (100 jobs).
The industries that lost jobs over the year in the region: leisure and hospitality (1,800 jobs); other services (700 jobs); government (400 jobs); manufacturing (300 jobs); information (300 jobs); and professional and business services (200 jobs).