In 2012, voters listed jobs and the economy as the most important priority in the election year. This brief explains that while Utah’s job growth was stronger than the nation’s before and after the Great Recession, job losses were worse than the national average during the recession. Utah’s unemployment rate peaked at 8.3% in 2010, but stayed well below the national average throughout the recession. Within Utah, the young and those with lower levels of education were most affected by the recession. At current employment growth, the U.S. economy will recover in 2015, and Utah will recover in early 2014.
As part of our Utah Priorities Project, this month Utah Foundation releases a series of policy briefs of each of the top ten issues identified in our 2012 Utah Priorities Survey. These briefs provide important information and policy analysis to ensure candidates and voters are well informed of the facts and trends related to each of the top ten issues.
Read this Utah Priorities Brief
Also see Utah Foundation research from recent years on jobs and the economy: