BREAKING: Arizona Reaches Full Jobs Recovery

PHOENIX, AZ (December 16, 2021) — With the November employment report showing 27,300 jobs added last month, Governor Ducey today announced that Arizona has now gained back the total number of jobs lost during the pandemic. Arizona is just the third state in the nation to reach full employment recovery. Nationally, the U.S. has recovered 83% of jobs lost since last year.

The November report also showed a decline in the unemployment rate from 5.2% to 4.7%, which ties a ten-year low reached in 2019. The last time Arizona’s unemployment rate dipped below 4.7% was March 2008.

“Today’s milestone represents a significant turning point in our recovery as we now have more jobs in Arizona than ever before,” said Sandra Watson, President and CEO of the Arizona Commerce Authority. “Arizona’s accelerated recovery has been fueled by the strength and resiliency of our incredible business community. In Arizona, we can also point to sound policy decisions from leaders like Governor Ducey that kept our economy open while providing support to families and industries hit the hardest.”

The Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity reports that Arizona now has 2,998,000 nonfarm jobs, up from 2,993,100 in February 2020.

Employment gains last month were reported in sectors including trade, transportation and utilities (16,100 jobs); education and health services (3,700 jobs); government (2,900 jobs); and professional and business services (2,000 jobs).

2021 has seen record economic development in terms of jobs and capital investment added. Over just the last 16 days, Arizona has seen a flurry of jobs announcements taking place across the state, including Eurofins in Tucson, United Airlines Aviate in Goodyear, Leonardo Electronics in Oro Valley, Zep in Kingman, Bizerba in Avondale, and ZenniHome in Page.

Media Contact

Alyssa Tufts, Arizona Commerce Authority, [email protected]

About the Arizona Commerce Authority
The Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA) is the state's leading economic development organization with a streamlined mission to grow and strengthen Arizona's economy. The ACA uses a three-pronged approach to advance the overall economy: attract, expand, create - attract out-of-state companies to establish operations in Arizona; work with existing companies to expand their business in Arizona and beyond; and help entrepreneurs create new Arizona businesses in targeted industries. For more information, please visit azcommerce.com and follow the ACA on Twitter @azcommerce.