A terrible mistake to bet against Delaware

“Especially Delaware.”

Those efforts are just the beginning of the to-do list I outlined for Team Delaware in the coming days, months and years. Our congressional delegation, Governor Markell and local leaders across the state still have a lot of work to do. I’ve long said that the government doesn’t create jobs, but it must always work to create a nurturing environment for job creation and job preservation. Together, we must ensure that Delaware fosters a nurturing environment for businesses so that companies large and small can thrive.Last week, I shared with you my op-ed that ran in the News Journal where I talked about “Team Delaware,” and how our state has come together to find opportunity in adversity by securing the future headquarters of both the specialty products company and the agriculture company that will be formed by the DowDuPont merger.

Our state and our nation are still recovering from the economic crisis that gripped our country seven years ago, but we’ve made a lot of progress. Over the past six years, our economy has added 14.3 million private sector jobs. Just this week, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that national filings for unemployment insurance have been below 300,000 for 52 straight weeks – one whole year. This is the longest streak of jobless claims below 300,000 since 1972 when the U.S. population was two-thirds what it is today. According to economists, any time the number of jobless claims falls below 400,000, our economy is growing and adding jobs.

Despite these promising statistics, however, too many of our friends, families and neighbors in Delaware are looking for work and struggling to make ends meet. While our economy is making real progress toward recovering the millions of jobs lost in the wake of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, I share the strong resolve of all Delawareans and Americans to create and improve job opportunities here in the First State and across the nation.

One way our congressional delegation can help do this is by connecting employers with job seekers. Since 2011, I’ve teamed up with Senator Coons and Congressman Carney to host over 25 job fairs across the state, including five job fairs specifically for our veterans. At each of these fairs, dozens of companies interview applicants to fill hundreds of full and part-time positions. 

This year, our first job fair will take place on Thursday, April 28 at the Atlantic Sands Hotel and Conference Center in Rehoboth. If you or someone you know is looking for work, I encourage you to join us on April 28. For more information on that event, or future job fairs, I encourage you to contact me through my website, Twitter and Facebook.