10. San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont; CA
> Change in Government Employment From Peak: 5.2% (92/100)
> Estimated Government Jobs Lost: 10,000
> Change in Overall Employment From Peak: 9.4% (83/100)
> Unemployment: 9.5%
> April 09-10 Job Growth: -3.6% (193/200)
> Population: 4,335,391
> Credit rating: Aa2 (San Francisco)
Last year, San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsome, now California’s lieutenant governor, sent City Hall reeling by sending layoff notices to 15,000 out of the city’s 26,000 workers. His successor Ed Lee has avoided such draconian moves, which were originally feared would take place, in his spending plan but does require “$20 million in concessions from police officers, firefighters and nurses who are due raises and haven’t yet agreed to forgo them,” according to the San Francisco Chronicle. “If they refuse, layoffs are a possibility, the mayor said.” The outlook for local government employment remains murky. Beacon Analysis recently argued that it didn’t expect the region would not reach its 2008 employment levels until 2015. Brooking’s MetroMonitor’s latest report labels the San Francisco among the top 20 weakest performers. It slipped 15 places to 103 places in the Milken rankings.
9. Augusta-Richmond County; GA-SC
> Change In Government Employment From Peak: 5.7% (91/100)
> Estimated Government Jobs Lost: 1,200
> Change In Overall Employment From Peak: 2.6% (6/100)
> April 09-10 Job Growth: -.57% (39/200)
> Unemployment: 8.4%
> Population: 556,877
> Credit rating: Aa2
The Augusta region has actually fared alright during the recession. In fact, the Brookings Institution’s MetroMonitor published in December 2010 labeled it as one of the 20 Strongest Performing Metro Areas. That momentum may be difficult to sustain. For instance, tight state budgets are squeezing Georgia Health Sciences University which has resulted in layoffs and furlough days for workers. The region is getting squeezed by layoffs among major local employers including the U.S. Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site, where the site’s primary contractor announced plans to layoff 1,400 workers by September. Since that ranking was issued, Georgia’s second-largest city has been squeezed further. It recently privatized its bus service and its municipal golf course called “The Patch” to close a $7 million budget deficit, which according to the Augusta Herald “some golfers have enjoyed sweetheart deals at the Patch; the talk has long been that favored folks fly free, for instance.” More cuts are needed, the paper says, adding “The only reason to oppose such attempts at savings is to look out for city employees or their friends, at the expense of the citizenry.”
8. Kansas City; MO-KS
> Changes In Government Employment From Peak: 6.1% (93/100)
> Estimated Government Jobs Lost: 6,500
> Changes In Overall Employment From Peak: 6.2% (48/100)
> Unemployment: 8.1%
> April 09-10 Job Growth: -1.49% (93/200)
> Population: 2,035,334
> Credit Rating: Aa2 (Kansas City, MO)
Austerity marches on in the Kansas City area. Johnson County Kansas Administrator Hannes Zacharias recently recommended that the county slash its workforce by 15%, or 600, over the next five years. Johnson has already cut 200 positions. Zacharias also recommended raises for the workforce of between 1.5% to 2%. something that Steve Rose, a columnist for the Kansas City Star, argues is a bad idea, saying that salaries should be frozen. The region’s economy is not helped by its dependence on Sprint-Nextel. Kansas City Mayor Sly James is watching his bottom line as well. His inauguration gala cost only $50,000. An editorial in the Kansas City Star recently called for an overhaul to the pension plans for public employees, arguing that “the status quo won’t cut it.”
7. Bakersfield-Delano; CA
> Changes In Government Employment From Peak: 6.8% (94/100)
> Estimated Government Jobs Lost: 2,500
> Changes In Overall Employment From Peak: 8% (66/100)
> Unemployment: 16%
> April 09-10 Job Growth: -2.13% (132/200)
> Population: 839,631
> Credit Rating: A1 (Bakersfield)
Officials in the Bakersfield, CA area have balanced their budgets through layoffs for years. A fiscal emergency was declared in Kern County in 2009 when all county departments were ordered to trim 20% from their budgets. Further layoffs remain possible, though Kern officials would like to avoid them. “Since salaries and benefits account for more than half of all General Fund expenditures, layoffs are certainly an option that will need to be explored whenever costs must be reduced,” the county says on its website. Give Kern County credit for creative spinning. The Kern Economic Development Corporation said in January: “New research shows that, while Kern County lost jobs in the recession, we have the lowest percentage of job loss in California amongst the metros we most often compete with when it comes to business.” The region ranked 86 out of 200 of the largest metropolitan areas rated by the Milken Institute.
6. Providence-New Bedford-Fall River; RI-MA
> Change In Local Government Employment: 7.2% (95/100)
> Estimated Government Jobs Lost: 3,000
> Change In Overall Employment From Peak: 8.8% (75/100)
> April 09-10 Job Growth: 2.86% (175/200)
> Unemployment: 10.9%
> Population: 1,600,85
> Credit rating: A3 (Providence)
Yesterday, members of the Providence City Council said they were concerned about the effects of more police layoffs in Rhode Island’s capital city. Seventy eight layoffs are needed to erase the city’s $110 million deficit, according to a statement the Mayor’s office gave the Providence Journal. Mayor Angel Tavares garnered national headlines earlier this year when the city gave layoff notices to all 1,926 teachers. He later explained that they were given as a precautionary measure and that most would keep their jobs. Providence was rated among the 2o weaker-performing regions by the Brookings Institution’s MetroMonitor. It was ranked 175 of 200 on the Milken Institute’s 2010 rankings, up from 183 a year earlier.
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