WEST VIRGINIA LOST 33,000 JOBS LAST YEAR - Poll Says Citizens Pessimistic

(02/14/2003)

West Virginia's economy lost a total of 33,000 jobs last year, with three-quarters of those displaced leaving the work force entirely, indicating they are no longer included in the unemployment statistics. Most of the jobs left the state, many going to foreign countries. There were layoffs in coal mostly because the market was very poor. A recent poll is pessimistic about the state's economic future. Sixty-percent of West Virginians believe the state is not likely to emerge from its economic problems anytime soon, saying they were more pessimistic about the future of the state's economy than they were in recent years. Nearly as many respondents say they were no better off financially now than they were a year ago. Marshall University economist Michael Hicks said the poll is based in fact. "The prognosis for West Virginia in the short term is bleak," he said. The West Virginia Poll is based on telephone interviews conducted February 3-5 with a random sample of 401 people living in the state. It is conducted by RMS Research Inc. for the Charleston Daily Mail, WSAZ NewsChannel 3 and MetroNews statewide radio network. The margin of error is 4.9 percentage points.

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