Tampa metro tops Florida in job growth

TAMPA — The Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater metro area added 38,200 jobs from the fourth quarter of 2014 to the fourth quarter of 2015, according to a statement from the Tampa Hillsborough Economic Development Corp.

That growth, a 3.1% increase in the number of jobs, places the Tampa metro area atop the list of industry employment growth in Florida, the statement says. The increase of 38,200 jobs also marks a 138% jump over the same period from 2013 to 2014, when the Tampa workforce grew by 14,900 jobs, a 1.3% increase.

From the third to the fourth quarter of 2015, the Tampa metro area increased employment by 0.6%, placing it above other metro areas like Atlanta, New York and Orlando, the EDC reports.