Wisconsin added 35,565 private-sector jobs in 2015, according to highly accurate job data released on Thursday by the state Department of Workforce Development.
That translates to a growth rate of 1.5 percent, which is nearly identical to 2014, when Wisconsin ranked 38th among all states in private-sector job growth. State-to-state comparisons for 2015 won’t be available until June.
The numbers come from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, which economists regard as the “gold standard” of job metrics. As their name suggests, the numbers are drawn from a “census” covering 98 percent of all employers, a process that’s time-intensive but accurate.
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These latest figures also round out a bigger picture of job growth under Gov. Scott Walker, who promised to help the state add 250,000 jobs in his first four years in office. Through five years of the Walker administration, Wisconsin has added 165,718 jobs, which is 84,282 short of Walker’s goal.
State officials also released two other sets of job numbers Thursday, both from monthly estimates that are more prone to error.
One of the estimates, taken from a monthly survey of households, showed Wisconsin’s unemployment rate tick down slightly in April from 4.5 percent to 4.4 percent. That’s lower than the national rate, which stood at 5 percent.
The other estimate, taken from a monthly survey of employers, showed Wisconsin lost 11,500 private sector jobs in April. That followed a monthly gain of 14,700 jobs in March.
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