TULSA, Okla. — The economy is often top of mind for many Americans, especially in an election season.
“We have more people in the labor force right now than ever before in state history, and that’s exciting,” Trae Rahill, CEO of the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission, said.
Rahill said Oklahoma has seen a growth in the labor participation rate, which means more people are entering the workforce.
In 2023, there was a net increase of roughly 18,000 jobs in our state.
“The economy right now is fairly strong, we’re very happy to report that,” Rahill said.
Rahill sat down with 2 News to talk about the current economic conditions in Oklahoma, including the unemployment rate.
“Our unemployment rate, most recently, is 3.4%," Rahill said. "That’s below the national average by a couple of percentage points.”
And while the unemployment rate looks good in our state, Rahill said they would like to see that number rise slightly as people look for jobs after leaving school or returning to the workforce.
“We want to draw people into the labor force; we want them to get back to work, so they hit the unemployment number first," Rahill said. "So, we kind of expect it.”
In 2023, Tulsa was officially named a tech hub by the federal government.
Rahill said the macro view of the economy is very focused on tech, but on a micro view, like a local smaller business, they need to focus on tech.
“I think it’s here to stay," Rahill said. "I think if we’re doing it right as a state, it’ll always be one of our top industries because we should be weaving it into just about any industry we have where there’s an opportunity.
On the tech front, Artificial Intelligence is a big topic right now, including concerns about its impact on jobs.
Rahill said the future is companies including it in their work, but not a mass elimination of jobs.
Rahill said the OESC has a new website to streamline the job search for Oklahomans.
He said it includes the workforce tools that communities have come to need over the last several years.
To visit the website, click here.
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