Skills gap remains toughest obstacle to filling jobs in Florida

Help wanted signs are as prevalent around nearly every Florida city as snowballs on the North Pole, but according to one data point the Florida jobs machine is warming up.

Florida Chamber of Commerce Foundation Chief Economist Jerry Parrish says the state has recovered more than 950,000 jobs since April 2020, the beginning of the pandemic. Over the last two months the state has gained 140,000 jobs, he says, bringing the total jobs recovered for the year to 264,300 through July.