Over the past few years, Arkansas has seen a growth in job creation. In an interview with Talk Business & Politics, Mervin Jebaraj, economist with the Walton College of Business, said Arkansas is expected to see 10,000 new jobs created but he said there are some concerns.
"Last year, we saw dramatic declines in the agriculture industry in Arkansas, which drove some of that no job growth in Jonesboro. We're hoping for more balance growth this year," he said.
The expected 10,000 jobs would be a decline from the 15,000 jobs created. Jebaraj said creating 15,000 shows strong growth but that number doesn't tell the whole story.
"We did have 15,000 job which on average is a good year but most of that job growth cam from North West Arkansas, Central Arkansas and a little bit in Fort Smith," he said.
Jebaraj said the lack of job growth in agriculture is one of the reasons for lack of job creation in certain regions in the state.
