(Camden, NJ) – The Camden County Board of Commissioners has worked diligently to ensure the county continues to grow and prosper when it comes to the expanding job market and workforce investment. This work has paid off as the New Jersey Department of Labor reports the county had a 10% increase in its overall labor force since 2013 to almost 277,000 while holding the second lowest unemployment rate in the South Jersey region.
Over the past 10 years Camden County has been a hotbed of economic activity by attracting new businesses and hosting large corporate expansions, including Cooper University Health Care, Jefferson Health and Virtua Health investing almost $3 billion for new hospital facilities and other ancillary services throughout the county. In addition, to those health care systems Archer, Campbell’s, American Water, ResinTech and strong residential growth has allowed the workforce to grow and drive down unemployment.
“This is excellent news as combatting unemployment and growing the economy are top priorities for me and my colleagues,” said Commissioner Jonathan Young, liaison to the Department of Economic and Workforce Development. “Cutting red tape and making this county a place where business and families can grow is one of our core principles as public servants representing this county. This is an ongoing, collaborative effort with our community partners and we are seeing the progress unfold right in front of us.”
Camden County’s unemployment rate currently sits at 4.6%, making it second in the region behind Gloucester County’s 4.2% unemployment rate. These are followed by: Salem County, 5.3%; Atlantic County, 5.7%; Cumberland County, 6.1%; and Cape May County, at 8.2%. Ten years ago in 2013, the unemployment rate in Camden County was over 8%.
“Camden County has gone through quite a transformation when it comes to unemployment and economic development,” said Commissioner Director Louis Cappelli Jr. “Just 10 years ago, the county’s unemployment rate was staggeringly high, at 8.2% and during the first year of the pandemic, that number shot back up to 7.1%. But thankfully, we have managed to get that number back down and get more residents back to work. And I anticipate that we will only continue on an upwards trajectory thanks to the investments we have put into workforce and economic development here in Camden County.”