New Jersey has regained 91 percent of the jobs lost during the recession.
Nancy Mantell, the director of the Rutgers Economic Advisory Service, predicts the balance will be recovered by early next year.
The most job growth over the next decade will be in education and health services, leisure and hospitality, and government, Mantell predicted.
“I know government is sort of a surprise, but government really goes primarily with population because it’s mostly at the local level,” she said. “So, as the population continues to grow, I do expect some increase in government employment.”