The respective decline for each sector was 200 and 500. Services and construction meanwhile each added 100 positions to their payrolls. Trade sector employment was unchanged from a year ago. Overall then these five sectors contracted by a net 500 positions, or approximately 1.5 percent. The largest part of the contraction can be attributed to the reported decline in government employment.
Retail activity is a good barometer of the overall health of the local economy.
They also expect to see modest improvements taking place in sales and store traffic for this Christmas. Hopefully this will materialize because the Christmas selling season is crucial to the long run financial health of most retailers. The index for the greater Stevens Point area reached 323 in September. This means there are 3.2 jobs being advertised for every one job in the base year. However, a portion of the advertising is from employers who are located outside the region.