Growing businesses need skilled workers and Florida is ready to supply them. At 10.2 million, Florida’s civilian workforce is third largest in the nation and one of the most culturally and linguistically diverse. Just over 20% of Floridians were born outside the U.S., and nearly one-third speak a language other than English at home.
3rd Largest Civilian Labor Force in the U.S. - 10.2 Million
Best in the U.S. - Higher Ed, 3rd Consecutive Year
U.S. News & World Report
No. 4 in the U.S. - High Tech Employment
Tech America Foundation
No. 6 in the U.S. Workforce Training
Business Facilities Magazine
12 Public Universities
28 Public and State Community Colleges
Florida’s workforce is highly trained and widely respected. In 2018, Business Facilities magazine once again named Florida No. 6 among all U.S. states for workforce training. Here, a well-honed combination of superior educational resources and practical training programs that may be customized to individual company and/or industry needs ensures that employers in Florida are readily able to connect with skilled workers at all levels.
Educational Excellence
Florida is home to 12 public universities and 28 public state and community colleges, plus dozens of private colleges, universities and technical schools — and no Floridian lives more than 50 miles from at least one of them. In 2019, U.S. News & World Report ranked Florida the best state in the nation for higher education for a third consecutive year, citing such factors as the time it takes for students to complete two- and four-year programs and the cost of in-state tuition and fees.
Florida’s colleges and universities are among the nation’s top producers of STEM graduates, a contributing factor to the state’s No. 4 rank on Tech America Foundation’s list of best states for high-tech employment. Two Florida colleges — Indian River State and Miami Dade — were awarded the 2019 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, and two Florida universities were ranked among the top 20 worldwide for the number of U.S. utility patents awarded in 2018 — University of South Florida at No. 16 with 96 patents and University of Florida at No. 19 with 90 patents.
Florida schools earn accolades at the local level too. Among the first states to offer voluntary pre-kindergarten, Florida continues to lead the nation in Advanced Placement exams — first among the 50 states for highest participation in and third for highest performance on AP exams during high school. Additionally, 19 Florida high schools earned a place among the nation’s top 200 on U.S. News & World Report’s “2019 Best High Schools” list; a total of 93 Florida high schools appeared on a list of the top 10% nationwide.
Customizable Training
Training programs available through CareerSource Florida, the state’s innovative partnership for workforce training, make it possible for business owners to become fully operational and profitable in less time and at lower cost. The agency’s Quick Response Training and Incumbent Worker Training grants help new and existing companies keep pace with changing technologies as they recruit and train employees in cutting-edge skills. The user-friendly Employ Florida Marketplace platform helps job seekers find work and employers connect with prospective job candidates.
