Business Growth in New Mexico
The education and health sectors, as well as government, were the fastest growing sectors in 2007, according to the New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions.
Education and health services added 3,500 jobs and government, including tribal governments, added 1,900 jobs. (Employment in casinos and other tribal enterprises is categorized as government employment by the state).
The seasonally adjusted employment rate for New Mexico was 3.7 percent in December 2007, up from 3.4 percent in November, according to the state. The national unemployment rate was 5 percent.
New Mexico added 7,300 jobs over the last year and it ranks 28 th for job growth. The rate of job growth from December 2006 to December 2007 was 0.9 percent. Job growth peaked at 3.6 percent in June 2006, but has been weakening ever since. Current levels are the lowest since 2003, according to state officials.
Construction employment was down 0.9 percent from December 2006. And significant layoffs in semiconductor manufacturing, which shed 1,800 jobs in 2007, offset other employment gains.
Employment in mining is growing, but production of oil and natural gas is declining. Employment growth in natural resources and mining was 3.1 percent.
The transportation, warehousing and utilities industry had an employment growth rate of 3.7 percent. Educational and health services rose 3.2 percent.
Employment in the state's film industry, which is categorized under the information industry, has been as many as 3,000 jobs above baseline levels, depending on production activity. It can log swings of employment as large as 2,000 jobs in one month, said state officials. The information industry reported 300 jobs more than December 2006. But even with the film industry growth, there is weakness in telecommunications and employment levels in the information sector are still below the peak employment levels set in spring 2001.
Job growth in leisure and hospitality was just 0.8 percent while government employment increased at the rate of one percent, or 1,900 jobs, because of jobs in state, local, and tribal government.
In Albuquerque , the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 3.5 percent in December, up from 3.3 percent in November. Unemployment fell one tenth of a percentage point from last December's rate of 3.6 percent. Payroll employment rose 0.1 percent, with retail trade adding 700 jobs, the government sector growing by 300 jobs and transportation, warehousing and utilities growing by 100. Construction and professional services sectors were down 200 jobs.
From December 2006, the strongest job growth was in transportation, warehousing and utilities with an increase of 3.7 percent. Retail trade grew by 2.2 percent, adding 1,000 new jobs in 2007.
Information, Driven in part by film productions, expanded by 2.2 percent, or 200 jobs. Education and health services increased 2.1 percent with 1,000 jobs. This sector is the top employer in Albuquerque behind professional and business services. That sector gained 500 jobs over the year for a growth rat of 0.8 percent.
Government employment grew by 1.1 percent over the year, as local government added 600 jobs and state government added 300. Government comprises about 20 percent of all nonfarm wage and salary employment in the city.
Manufacturing employment was down 1, 100 jobs, or 4.5 percent, primarily due to layoffs at Intel (NASDAQ: INTC). Wholesale trade employment was also down, falling by 100 jobs or 0.7 percent.
In Santa Fe , the unemployment rate in December was 2.7 percent, down from December 2006 when it was 3 percent. The City lost 200 jobs in December as employment declines in government, construction and other services offset advances in retail trade and financial activities.
Over 2007, job growth was 3.5 percent with 2,200 new jobs. Job growth in the area is about four times higher than the statewide average, making Santa Fe the fastest growing metro area in the state.
The education and health services sectors added 700 jobs, more than any other industry. Local government added 500 jobs and state government added 100 while the federal government lost 100.
The film industry helped boost the information sector with 400 jobs. The professional and business services industry also gained 400 jobs. Only the construction industry reported fewer jobs than in December 2006.
Source: NM Business Weekly
2008
Population Growth Update
NM POPULATION NOW TOPS 2 MILLION: New Mexico 's population has finally topped 2 million , according to UNM's Bureau of Business and Economics, reports the Albuquerque Journal! The US Census Bureau was anticipating this milestone would occur in 2008, but UNM's estimate is considered a more accurate measure of the current population, and their figures indicate that we actually rolled past the 2 million mark last year. In fact, on April 11, 2006 , to precise!
So, New Mexico now has roughly four times the population of Wyoming . Of course, we're still probably smaller than just the city of Houston , and New York City has us beat many times over! The population has grown really fast, with fewer than 200,000 people living in NM in 1900, through reaching the 1 million mark in 1970, and then doubling again since then.
The demographics have changed quite a bit as well. Likewise, we have become more urbanized. In 1900, only 15% of the state's population was located in Bernalillo County ; by 1950, that percentage had grown to 21%, and currently 30% of the state's people live right here in Bernalillo County . The percentage of folks clustered aright around Albuquerque is even higher if Sandoval County (with Rio Rancho, Placitas , and Corrales) and Valencia County (including Bosque Farms, Los Lunas , and Belen ) are included as part of the Greater Albuquerque Metro Area.
Ethnicity figures indicate that about 44% of New Mexicans now are Anglos, while 43% are Hispanic, 9% are Native Americans, and only 2% African American. Women also outnumber men, 51% to 49%. This is a complete reversal of the ratio in 1950, and significantly different fro the figure in 1900, when only 47% of residents were female, to 53% male.
We've also been aging over the past century. The median age was 21 in 1900, 24 in 1950 and now is 34. Predictions are that the state will get even older on average in future years, as the boomers age and more retirees head here. It's anticipated that seniors 65 and older will account for 26% of the population by 2030.
Per Capita real GDP - $31,986, 40th of 50 states (2006)
Per Capita income - $29,673, 44th of 50 states (2006)
Unemployment - 3.10% 6th out of 50 states (2008)
African American Chamber of Commerce NM, Inc.
Journalist Panel Discussion and Interview
October 30 – November 1, 2008
Issues of Most Importance to African Americans in New Mexico
POVERTY: With an overall poverty rate of 16.7%, New Mexico has the 3 rd highest poverty rate in the United States
• African Americans have a 27.8% poverty rate in New Mexico
• 33% of African American Children in New Mexico are living in Poverty
• 59% of African American children live under 200% of poverty compared to 33% of white children in New Mexico
• Family poverty despite work – The greatest percentage of parents (of infants) working are African American (61%) – greater than the percentage of Hispanic, Native American or white parents. However, African American mothers work longer hours for less pay than all other mothers in New Mexico . High levels of poverty persist among African American families despite work!
RACISM & PREJUDICE : Although New Mexico is heralded as being a “multi-cultural state,” African Americans were not included in this “multi-cultural population mix” until 2006, after 10 years of Black organizations protesting to the Governor about this “exclusion.” “Racism is rooted in ignorance and fear and New Mexico has an overabundance of both.”
• In New Mexico , Latinos distrust Blacks. Blacks distrust Latinos and whites. Whites distrust anything non-white and that list includes Latinos, Blacks Arabs and just about anyone else who is not white Anglo-Saxon protestant.
• What all of the above listed cultures have in common, is a dislike for Blacks.
• Just recently, the GOP chairman of Bernalillo County made the following public remarks: “The truth is that Hispanics came here as conquerors”, he said. “African Americans came here as slaves; “Hispanics consider themselves above Blacks. They won't vote for a Black president.”
• A New Mexican Republican leader is under fire today for writing a letter to the editor of the Alamogordo Daily news in which she called Senator Barack Obama a “Muslim socialist.”
• Marcia Stirman, the leader of a group called the Republican Women of Otero County, defended herself to the AP by saying something far, far more offensive and embarrassing: she said of above statement about (Obama being a Muslim), “I don't trust them at all. They've sworn across the world that they are o ur enemies. Why are we trying to elect one is besides me.”
• “Dog-Whistle Racism” in New Mexico : is political campaigning or policy-making that uses coded words and themes to appeal to conscious or subconscious racist concepts and frames. For example, the concepts ‘welfare queen', ‘states rights', ‘Islamic terrorist', ‘uppity', ‘thug', ‘tough on crime', and ‘illegal alien' all activate racist concepts that have already been planted in the public consciousness and now are being activated by campaign activities, media coverage, public policy and cultural traditions.
• New Mexico is a minority/majority multicultural state where 67% of the children are racial minorities: 51% are Hispanic, 12% are Native American, 2% are African American and 2% are Asian, while only 33% are white non-Hispanic. Despite their high numbers, children of color in New Mexico tend not to fare as well as their white counter parts due to the numerous disparities they face.
HEALTH CARE DISPARITIES : Lack of health insurance is the single most important factor that explains the lower health status of African Americans, as compared to Anglos.
• About 414,000 New Mexicans, or 23% of the state's population, don't have health insurance.
• The uninsured rate for African Americans in New Mexico is 21.6%
• Infant mortality in New Mexico is highest among African American babies: 14 per 1,000 males, and 12 per 1,000 female live births
• In New Mexico , African Americans are first in low birth weight babies and infant deaths; tied for 1 st in cancer deaths; 2 nd in deaths from diabetes and chronic lower respiratory deaths; and 3 rd in deaths due to heart disease
• Insurance coverage, access to care, quality of care, and improvements in delivery of care remains a primary cause of concern among African American citizens in New Mexico
• Most Black mothers lack health insurance and do not receive prenatal care during their pregnancies. Many Black babies in NM die before the age of one
EDUCATION : High School dropouts are epidemic in New Mexico . Schools across the state have begun to “fudge” on how to calculate the Dropout rate. For instance, in New Mexico , the system only counts students who start and complete their senior year, but doesn't track freshmen, sophomores or juniors. Our dropout rate, in recent years was reported at about 34.4%. Then the calculation was changed, and voila, the rate dropped to 10%
- From 2001 through 2005, African American Dropouts were 27.3, 20.8, 25.5, 19.7 and 22 respectively. (source: APS)
- The estimated 12,690 high school students who dropped out of New Mexico schools instead of graduating with the Class of 2006 cost the economy of the state about 3.2 billion in lost wages over their lifetime (source: Alliance for Excellent Education).
- If the nearly 14,000 high school dropouts from the Class of 2008 had earned their diplomas instead of dropping out, New Mexico's economy would have seen and additional $3.6 billion in wages over these student's lifetimes.
- Quality Counts ranked New Mexico 47 th in academic performance of elementary and secondary students and 39 th in aligning education from early childhood programs to a career.
- New Mexico falls below the national average in preschool enrollment, high school graduation; reading and math proficiency; enrollment in post secondary education; family income; and the percentage of parents who work full time, have a degree and speak English fluently
- A significant percentage of African American students are graduating but are not proficient to enter college without taking remedial English and Math courses.
- Poverty and poor health adversely affect youth's ability to perform at a high level in the academic classroom.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM: America reached a prison population of over 2 million inmates by midyear 2002.
• African Americans make up 2% of the state population but represent 10% of those incarcerated in New Mexico prisons
• Most of the African American prison population is males and fathers. Therefore the Black family unit is subjected to poverty conditions, children are being raised without fathers and young Black males are lacking a father image and oversight that will keep them from choosing a life of crime and violence.
• New Mexico has highest rate of private prison use in the nation
• Racial profiling continues to shape our prison population
• “Driving While Black (DWB) is pandemic
JUVENILE JUSTICE SYSTEM: Research shows that the odds of “social control” significantly increase for African Americans at each stage of the criminal justice process from arrest to incarceration
• African American youth comprise roughly 2.2% of New Mexico 's juvenile population at-risk and are often overrepresented in the juvenile justice system
• African American juvenile offenders are consistently overrepresented at arrest as compared to white juvenile offenders
• African American offenders are consistently arrested at over twice the rate of white offenders indicating significant differential handling of African American offenders
• African American youth are overrepresented in secure confinements, both juvenile detention and correctional settings, and transfers to adult court
• African American youth violence and gang related crime is rampant. Many youth do not have employment opportunities and training programs that will assist them to develop job skills
• 6% of youth in the NM Juvenile Justice system are comprised of Black teens
PROPER CARE AND TREATMENT OF BLACK VETERANS: The total number of African Americans holding armed forces veteran status is 23,332. 53% are males and 47% are female
• Many Black veterans have difficulty getting health care, proper treatment and appropriate benefits (based on survey of Black Veterans)
• 23% of New Mexico 's homeless are veterans
• There is a disturbingly high number of Uninsured veterans needing medical care and not being able to get it within the past year
• A high number had not seen a doctor or nurse within the past year and two thirds failed to receive preventive care
• VA reaches only about 25% of needy veterans
Ronald W. Hinson
Chairman of the Board
African American Chamber of Commerce NM, Inc.