Our annual state-of-the state issue examines how the Minnesota economy is doing six years after the end of the recession. In an overview story, DEED analyst Dave Senf takes a broad look at the state economy. He focuses on employment growth, unemployment rates, job vacancies, wage and salary trends, job growth projections and much more. Six other stories break down the economy by state region.
The main takeaway from these stories is Minnesota's economy is doing well entering the seventh year of the recovery. In some respects - such as the unemployment rate - the state ranks among the best in the country. But in other areas, including long-term unemployment and job quality, there's room for improvement.
Download the full PDF of this issue or select the links below to view individual stories.
Every issue of Trends is filled with data about the labor force and economy, but a particular statistic that caught my eye in this edition relates to the tightening market for workers in Minnesota.
Minnesota’s recovery is six years old, but there’s still room for improvement in some areas of the economy.
Northwestern Minnesota displayed remarkable economic resilience during and after the recession.
The Northeast region is approaching full recovery, although job growth in that part of the state has been uneven.
The seven-county Twin Cities region has made a strong comeback since the recession.
Central Minnesota is generating new jobs at a faster pace than anywhere in the state.
Southwestern Minnesota, with a heavy concentration of employment in manufacturing and agriculture, still hasn’t recovered all the jobs that were lost in the recession.
The Southeast region has surpassed its pre-recessionary employment levels and is still growing, although at a slower pace.
