During a March 3, 2024, appearance on CNN, former Republican Gov. Scott Walker cited one of them: Layoffs.
When asked about how people in Wisconsin are feeling about the presidential election, Walked declared: “We just had 100% increase in layoffs.”
If election is a referendum on high prices & the economy, border security, and public safety, @joebiden loses. Wisconsin had a more than 100% increase in layoffs and wages haven’t caught up with prices. Don’t tell us Bidenomics is working because it’s not. pic.twitter.com/A37XDzOBv4
— Scott Walker (@ScottWalker) March 3, 2024
At that point in the year, we were two months into 2024. Had there really been a 100% increase in layoffs?
How many people have been laid off this year versus last year?
Although he was unclear on what timeframe he was talking about, Walker’s staff told us he was comparing the first two months of last year to this year. It is easy to check that by reviewing the Worker Adjustment and Retaining Notification (WARN) notices for January and February.
In January 2023, there were roughly 850 people laid off in Wisconsin. In February 2023, there were 288 people laid off, adding up to 1,140 workers.
Meanwhile, in January of this year, 1,794 people were laid off, followed by 1,112 in February. That’s a total of 2,906.
When we reached out to Walker’s office for more evidence they shared an article from WKOW from Feb. 3 stating layoffs are up 109% in January.
And clearly, that trend continued in February.
What are other job indicators showing?
On the layoff front, the first two months of 2024 have been rough, but at the outset we noted there are other measures of the economy in general, and joblessness in particular.
For instance, Wisconsin’s unemployment rate has been at or below 3% for the last 12 months according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Nationwide the unemployment rate is 3.9%.
According to the most recent data, in 2023, Wisconsin had more than 3 million people working, which was a record high, and so far that trend is continuing as the state Department of Workforce Development reported in February that non-farm jobs increased by 22,400 in the month, to 3.03 million jobs overall.
At the time Walker made the statement, in January, the department reported the state in December hit a record high number of jobs for the second straight month, topping 3 million. That information was available to him at the time of the statement.
Also at the time of the statement, Wisconsin’s unemployment rate was 3.3% in December, below the national average of 3.7%.
In Wisconsin, the labor force participation rate is 65.7%, which is higher than the national average of 62.5%, according to the DWD, which is roughly where it was when Walker made the statement.
So there is data that suggests Wisconsin’s job situation is in good shape, but Walker cherry picked one data point when making his point.
Our ruling
Walker said on CNN on March 3 that Wisconsin “just had 100% increase in layoffs.”
The number is accurate, comparing January and February of this year to the same months last year. But Walker ignores other data points on jobs, such as the low unemployment rate and high labor force participation rate.
Our definition of Mostly True is that the statement is accurate but needs clarification or additional information.
That fits here.
Sources
Scott Walker tweet, March 3, 2024
BLS Data: Wisconsin Adds Jobs, Statewide unemployment rate dips to 3%, March 21, 2024
BLS Data: Total Nonfarm Jobs Hit Record High for Second Month, Jan. 18, 2024
DWD, 2024 Layoff notices and updates filed with DWD, last checked March 26, 2024
DWD, 2023 layoff notices and updates filed with DWD, last checked March 26, 2024
WKOW, Wisconsin sees increase in layoffs at big companies, Feb. 3, 2024
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Fact check: Walker’s point on layoffs is correct but lacks context