Florida unemployment drop among best in the country

Florida has posted the second-largest percentage drop in unemployment over the past year, trailing only New Mexico, according to a Bureau of Labor Statistics report out Tuesday.

Florida unemployment fell to 10 percent in November, down from 11.9 percent in November 2010. In the same period, New Mexico's jobless rate fell 2.1 percentage points, from 8.6 to 6.5 percent. Florida added a net 98,100 jobs over the past year, a tally behind only California (up 233,100 jobs) and Texas (up 226,000 jobs).

The improvement is not as good as it appears, however, because of Florida's population growth and the fact that thousands of Floridians have given up looking for work, at least temporarily, and are no longer counted among the jobless.

Florida remains one of just seven states with unemployment still in the double digits and remains far above the national average of 8.6 percent. Although Florida released its latest unemployment statistics last Friday, not all other states had reported before Tuesday.