Today the Bureau of Labor Statistics released the Employment Situation Summary for November. The report showed that the economy added 120,000 jobs last month with the unemployment rate dropping to 8.6% – the lowest mark in two and a half years. While it’s encouraging to see the economy adding jobs, the significant rate drop can be a bit misleading. The dramatic decline comes, in part, because 315,000 people gave up looking for work and no longer are considered part of the labor force.
Some other notable takeaways from today’s report include:
The number of unemployed persons, at 13.3 million, was down by 594,000 in November. The labor force, which is the sum of the unemployed and employed, was down by a little more than half that amount.
The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks and over) was little changed at 5.7 million and accounted for 43.0 percent of the unemployed.
The number of persons employed part time for economic reasons dropped by 378,000 over the month to 8.5 million. These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job.
In November, 2.6 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force, about the same as a year earlier. These individuals were not in the labor force, wanted and were available for work, and had looked for a job sometime in the prior 12 months.
Today’s report, while it could be worse, leaves us with mixed feelings. It’s important that the economy continues to add jobs, but the unemployment rate remains far too high. Furthermore a sustained rate drop would ideally be driven purely by restored economic certainty and a surge in hiring, not a reduction in the workforce. Congress must begin to enact the spending reforms necessary to make this a reality. Government overspending not only is dangerous, it crowds out private investment, hamstringing business’ ability to plan for the future and invest in new employees. A robust economy will be built on the American worker, not on irresponsible stimulus spending.
how is unemployment rate firguired is it by how many chechs are written if so did not long term expire Obama extened just so it would run out just in time too make him look good he needs a lot more to make himself look good to me.He is so bad nothing could make him look good to me.