Welcome to the Cowboy Cradle of the Southwest. Founded in 1866, Florence is an Arizona "Main Street" town. An original Old West mining town, Florence is centrally located at the Junction of U.S. Highway 79 and Arizona 287 just 61 miles from downtown Phoenix and 70 miles from Tucson.

EMPLOYMENT
Florence, the county seat, offers diverse employment opportunities mostly in the public sector. Major employers are the many county, state, federal, and private prisons sited in town as well as the county and town entities.

Studies have revealed that Florence has more jobs than available local personnel. Many jobs are now being filled by employees driving from the metropolitan areas. Our low unemployment rate has averaged just over 5%.

Most skill categories are needed on a continuing basis by our major employers. Our service and retail industries also provide opportunities in the private sector.

Major Employers in Florence, Arizona (Updated 02/20/07)

Organization	Total Jobs (FT and PT)
Florence Unified School District	350
Town of Florence	179
State (Florence Main and Eyman)	2671
GEO (Florence West and Central AZ)	360
CCA (Detention Center and Correctional Facility)	960
Pinal County	1825
TOTAL	6345