- March 5, 2025
Flagler County's unemployment ranking has not budged, according to numbers released June 21 by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity.
The latest numbers show that Flagler County’s unemployment rate is 9.5%, still the second-highest rate in Florida.
The Palm Coast metropolitan statistical area also had an unemployment rate of 9.5%, the highest in the state. Flagler’s labor force rested at 35,733, with an unemployment level of 3,393.
However, the future is looking brighter for employment in the county, officials said.
Joseph Roy, area manager at the Palm Coast Business Assistance Center, said he expects the rate to decrease in the coming months due to the recent openings of popular businesses such as Zaxby’s and Carrabba’s Italian Grill.
“There’s a lot of activity going on here within Palm Coast and Flagler County,” he said. “The city shows continued growth.”
The Business Assistance Center has also played a role in boosting employment around the county.
Roy said that Flagler’s ranking might be due to the fact that people work outside of Flagler and commute to St. Johns or Volusia counties for business. National economic problems could have also contributed negatively to Palm Coast hiring industries.
Earlier this month, the Flagler County Board of County Commissioners approved an incentive package for Project Green Dream, which is considering locating to Flagler.
The name of the company is withheld during negotiations, but if it comes to Flagler, it is expected to create 300 jobs within three years. The average salary for those jobs is about $43,000.
Roy also said construction and housing businesses are slowly beginning to revive.
Florida’s seasonal unadjusted unemployment rate was 7.1%, the lowest since September 2008, when it was 7%.
The national unemployment rate stands at 7.6%.
