More than half the 125,000 net jobs gained in Virginia over the past year have come in the leisure/hospitality sector, which was hardest hit by COVID and the resulting government-mandated economic shutdowns.
Leisure/hospitality gained 64,000 jobs from May 2021 to May 2022 to stand at 405,300, according to figures reported by the Virginia Employment Commission.
The jobs comeback in the sector represented a boost of 18.8 percent, nearly six times the 3.4-percent overall increase in jobs over the past year.
In May, Virginia’s non-farm employment was estimated at 4,044,400, up 125,000 (3.2%) from a year before. There were 110,300 additional private-sector jobs (up 3.2%) and 14,700 more public-sector positions (up 2%).
Northern Virginia accounted for 43,500 of the 125,000 additional statewide jobs, rising 2.9 percent to 1.52 million. Across Virginia metro areas, the increase in year-over-year jobs ranged from 1.6 percent in Virginia Beach to 6.3 percent in Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford.
