Connecticut missed out on much of a decade-long national economic expansion. The state added essentially zero private-sector jobs between 2017 and 2019, its population was essentially flat during the decade, and it has hemorrhaged corporate headquarters and major employers.
The post-COVID era presents both a threat and an opportunity for Connecticut’s fraught jobs situation.
Employers are re-evaluating their physical office needs as professionals have shifted, many permanently, to working remotely. As leases expire, Connecticut risks bearing an outsized share of cuts to both office space and jobs as multi-state employers face the same policies from Hartford that suppressed growth here in the leadup to the pandemic. On the other hand, this reshuffling event gives us the chance to snag more nimble operations, and jobs, from neighboring states and beyond—if state officials make it worth employers’ while.
Read Full Article »