| Jobs: Unemployed |
The overall percentage of unemployed by selected industries.
Disproportionate Unemployment Filling the Line
Published Friday, June 26th, 2009
The news of unemployment may be all around us right now, but what is not really understood is the makeup of the unemployment percentage. The overall number is just that: a composite of different numbers, averaged together, and displayed as a percentage of the overall unemployed among the labor force. For example, “The Labor Force” is just a way of describing us all, blue collar and white collar. Yet, there are those who can withstand recession woes (who can save for a rainy day) and those who cannot (check to check living). What is missing from that single unemployment percentage number is that the recession does not hit everyone equally.
The pre-recession unemployment was at 5% of the overall labor force. Yet, now we are edging on 9.4% unemployment with 5.7 million jobs lost since the beginning of the recession, as May provided 345,000 new jobless claims. Making up a majority of those in the unemployment line are manufacturing and construction workers who tend to be less educated and/or recent immigrants. For minorities such as the black and Latino groups, the Bureau of Labor Statistics states that the rate of unemployment is edging on 20%, leading many to fall instantly into poverty and straining State budgets.
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Jobs and Earnings
Published Friday, September 5th, 2008
The unemployment rate has hit a new 5 year high in August; 2008 has seen 608,000 jobs lost in this economy. The unemployment rate rose again to 6.1%, the highest level since September 2003, up from 5.7% in July and 4.7% a year ago. That 0.4% rise accounted for 84,000 jobs lost as compared to July’s 60,000.
Where are these jobs being cut from? Biggest loss of jobs comes from the manufacturing sector with 61,000 jobs cut. The second biggest loss is the services industry including accountants, consultants and legal services with 53,000 jobs lost. Retailers, despite the season and the stimulus checks, cut jobs by 20,000. Construction at 8,000 and leisure & hospitality lost 4,000.
To offset the numbers, jobs in the education and health industries gained 72,000. Average earnings rose to $18.14 in August, a 0.4% increase from July to make the year to date rise of 3.6%.
The Federal Reserve stated that the economy is still “weak.” As reported by NBC, the fed is to let the interest rate remain at 2% for the remainder of the year despite concerns of inflation and slow growth.
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U.S. Department of Labor: Unemployed - http://www.dol.gov/dol/audience/aud-unemployed.htm
The Department of Labor fosters and promotes the welfare of the job seekers, wage earners, and retirees of the United States by improving their working conditions, advancing their opportunities for profitable employment, protecting their retirement and health care benefits, helping employers find workers, strengthening free collective bargaining, and tracking changes in employment, prices, and other national economic measurements.
U.S. Job Corps - http://jobcorps.dol.gov/about.htm
Job Corps is a no-cost education and vocational training program administered by the U.S. Department of Labor that helps young people ages 16 through 24 get a better job, make more money, and take control of their lives.