http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/knau/local-knau-940755.mp3
Phoenix, AZ – The state's jobless rate dropped a tenth of a point last month,
to 9.4 percent. Aruna Murthy of the state Department of Commerce
said that was led by retailers who brought on 87-hundred workers
in November. While many of these are temporary, that's still
better than the last two years when seasonal hiring was more
anemic. But Murthy said Arizona has a way to go to get Christmas
employment gains up to where they were before the economy went
south.
(People are still not spending at the same levels prior to
recession. But it does appear, if you just look at the jump,
people are tired of waiting not to spend. It looks like they're
beginning to spend now.)
Employment at bars and restaurants also picked up last month. But
there was a drop in hotel employment.
(It's a small change. It's only 1,000 jobs. I just feel like we
are not getting the same volume of visitors as we have seen in
the past. It could be that people lost jobs. They don't have the
money to travel.)
There was an even bigger decline in entertainment employment, the
people who work concerts and other special events. Murthy would
not speculate on a link to the tough new immigration law which
led to cancellation of conferences and the decision by some
entertainers to boycott the state. For Arizona Public Radio this
is Howard Fischer.