Northeast Ohio Shows Signs of Recovery as Employment Rises

5/16/2011

For additional information, contact:                    Jenny Febbo 216.363.5426 (o)
                                                                     440.258.8805 (c)
                                                                     jfebbo@teamneo.org


NORTHEAST OHIO SHOWS SIGNS OF RECOVERY AS EMPLOYMENT RISES
Team NEO Report Offers a Statistical Look at the 16-County Regional Economy

CLEVELAND, May 16, 2011 — Northeast Ohio employment is trending upward, reports the quarterly Cleveland Plus Economic Review, released today by Team NEO. The Cleveland Plus region now has posted year-over-year employment increases for the past four consecutive quarters.

Notably, Q1 employment figures rose year-over-year for the first time since 2007. The unemployment rate is trending positively as well, improving at a faster rate than that of the nation overall.

Supporting statistics include the following:
• NEO Employment Sees First Q1 Increase Since 2007
o Employment grew by almost 40,000 jobs in Q1 2011 as compared to Q1 2010, averaging 1.91 million workers. This represents the first year-over-year Q1 increase since 2007.
• Unemployment Rate Improves Faster Than National Average
o While averaging 9.6% for Q1 2011 (identical to the state and just slightly above the 9.5% U.S. rate), Northeast Ohio’s employment rate dropped to 9.0% in March 2011, compared to the U.S. rate of 9.2%.
o Unemployment in Northeast Ohio decreased 2% from Q1 2010 to Q1 2011, while decreasing 1% nationally.


Manufacturing, Service and Construction Employment Rises
o Compared to Q1 2010, the services sector added 19,000 workers, manufacturing 5,900 and construction 3,500 in Q1 2011.
• Unemployment Claims Continue Downward Momentum: Fewest Since October 2007
o With average initial claims averaging 5,200 in Q1 2011 – about 1,000 fewer than Q1 2010 – initial claims for March 2011 were their lowest since the recession began, at 3,900 initial claims.
• NEO Recession Employment on Par With U.S.
o The Northeast Ohio employment index continues to track the same as the U.S., with both at about 6% lower than the unemployment level of Q4 2007.
o Through 14 quarters of the 1981 recession, Northeast Ohio employment trailed the U.S. by 7%; through 14 quarters of the current recession, the region is mirroring the national trend.

Team NEO publishes the Cleveland Plus Economic Review quarterly to provide a holistic picture of Northeast Ohio’s economy. It is the only regular source of collective economic data for the 16-county region. The non-profit organization uses the information to attract new businesses and jobs to the Cleveland Plus region.

Team NEO uses Moody’s Economy.com data, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and Ohio’s Labor Marketing Information to aggregate regional figures.

Team NEO advances Northeast Ohio’s economy by attracting businesses worldwide to the 16-county Cleveland Plus region. The organization is a joint venture of the region's largest metro chambers of commerce. Since 2007, the organization has attracted 42 new company expansions or relocations, 3,600 new jobs and more than $142M in annual payroll to Northeast Ohio, leading to a total annual regional payroll benefit of $257M.

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