Las Cruces Sun-News examines key industries & jobs, as pandemic nears end of third year
LAS CRUCES – The jobs industry in New Mexico — and in Doña Ana County — is complex. Clearly, every job sector is continuing the work to rebound from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. But, as we look at those recoveries, we wanted to take a much closer look at some of the industries most impacted by the pandemic, and one emerging sector — the cannabis industry, which became legal on a recreational level on April 1, 2022.
As part of the USA TODAY Network’s look at regional job markets, the Las Cruces Sun-News is documenting how these three critical sectors are performing locally and around the state.
Across all sectors, Doña Ana County saw unemployment rates improve from 5.8% in October 2021 to 4.2% in October 2022. That’s also slightly better than the statewide unemployment rate of 4.3%. And while those figures seem to point to a promising future, not all job sectors are showing the same sort of recovery — at least not from the perspectives of those on the ground.