#1 doesn’t always mean football

For years, being #1 meant college football here in Nebraska. While there are high hopes for that to return someday, Nebraskans can still boast of major #1 feats that were announced earlier this week by Gov. Pete Ricketts.
            In fact, Nebraska is #1 in the nation in three significant areas regarding labor, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics—#1 in unemployment rate (1.9%), #1 in labor force participation (70%) and #1 in the nation for employment-to-population ratio (68.7%).
        In a time (still) when many people have chosen not to return to work, for whatever reason, Nebraska’s reputation as a state with people who work hard every day remains strong. The stats above prove it.
        People who work for a living make state officials smile for other reasons, too. When people are working at high rates, it helps add to the dollars headed into the state’s general fund. In May, according to the Governor’s office, receipts were more than $52 million above their forecasts. Ricketts said earlier this week that not only means a bigger cash reserve for the state, but hinted that it will enable state officials to add more tax cuts in 2023. Of course, we’ll wait and see if that happens.
    With these numbers that show Nebraskans are working at record levels, I’m still puzzled why there are so many job openings everywhere. It’s rare to stop into a business in most Nebraska communities and its larger cities and not see a “Help Wanted” sign. Story after story continue to report on the shortage of workers.
    Gov. Ricketts said one of his goals has always been to make Nebraska a place where it’s easy to do business. A low unemployment rate here says maybe that’s working. Recruiting new business has been a goal in a lot of communities, including Imperial. It appears workers will still have to be fought for, though.