Wisconsin shed fewer jobs than neighbors in pandemic’s wake

A little more than six months into the COVID-19 pandemic, Wisconsin had lost more than 150,000 jobs from the same point a year earlier. Businesses that depend on faceto- face interaction with customers, such as entertainment, recreation, accommodation and food service sectors, were especially hard-hit.

Yet there are signs that this sizable blow to employment in Wisconsin, was less severe than in neighboring states, and the nation, as a whole.

Employment cratered in Wisconsin, and nationally, from March to April 2020, then climbed in the spring and summer months. Yet, notably, year-over-year employment losses in Wisconsin, from September 2019 to September 2020, were smaller, on a percentage basis, than nationally, or in the neighboring states of Minnesota, Michigan, Iowa and Illinois.

A look at the jobs picture broken down by super-sector (a classification that groups employment into 12 broad categories) provides additional context. In the 10 super-sectors for which data is available for all states, Wisconsin’s year-overyear decline in employment on a percentage basis through September, was smaller than the national decline in all 10 sectors.

In the five-state region that includes Wisconsin, and its four neighboring states, Wisconsin’s employment loss percentage was lower than the combined loss of the other four states, across nearly all super-sectors.

Employment is just one measure of the state’s economic position. Still, these findings underscore one metric that puts Wisconsin on better footing than some other states from which to continue to rebuild its economy.

An additional boost may come from the American Rescue Plan Act, which will provide a massive infusion of federal funds to states and localities. The state is pledging to share federal relief funds to aid businesses, boost the tourism industry and improve the state’s infrastructure – all of which have the potential to preserve or create jobs.

In considering uses for these dollars, state and local governments may wish to consider the disparate impact this downturn has had on certain economic sectors, particularly leisure and hospitality.

This information is a service of the Wisconsin Policy Forum, the state’s leading resource for non-partisan state and local government research, and civic education.