Three Graphs Regarding Wisconsin Economic Policy
Wisconsin employment falls in March; continues to lag the Nation.
Figure 1: Wisconsin nonfarm payroll employment from December 2014 (blue), February 2015 (red), March 2015 (green). March release from DWD. Source: BLS, and WI DWD.
The big shift downward is due to the benchmark revision to figures, using figures from the QCEW through September 2014 (see discussion here).
Of course, one should not put too much weight on one observation, especially a preliminary one. Greater reliance should be put on trends. Here, established trends remain in place.
Figure 2: Log US nonfarm payroll employment (blue), Wisconsin(red), both normalized to 2011M01=0. Source: BLS, and WI DWD.
The divergent trends apparently have had some impact on popular opinion.
Figure 3: sourced from Marquette Law School poll.
From the Marquette University Law School Poll:
Voters also see the state’s employment situation as turning down compared to other states, with 52 percent saying that Wisconsin is lagging behind other states in job creation, 34 percent saying that the state is doing about the same as other states and 8 percent saying that the state is creating jobs faster than other states. In October, 42 percent said the state was lagging, 38 percent said about the same and 13 percent said Wisconsin was creating jobs faster.
Disclosure: None.