They quit looking for work because they can AFFORD to quit looking for work.

I sort of have that option too, but rather than look for another job, I opted to switch to part-time work.

We will see how that works out. I may quit by March 14th depending on the new supervisor. I also am tentatively looking for teaching jobs. I sorta like the idea of teaching math at some high school (whether I would actually like it in practice is another question).

And oh, what are we supposed to sing woe, woe, woe because of 209,000 new jobs? 209,000 is a pretty darned good month.

2 years. Was at the job 4 months and the company downsized. She's looking for work again.

but if she was a "discouraged worker" as it is defined by the Department of Labor, then she would - no longer be looking.

Which would probably still mean she had options, either a spouse or parents to support her.

deadbeat Dad. I'm her parent and live on social security. She is more than discouraged - panicked.

Funny how right wingers never disputed the way unemployment was calculated when Bush was in office.

Funny dat!!

that's with Obama inheriting a situation far far worse than Reagan did...

I argued many times when Bush was President with people who insisted that the economy was totally awful, either that or that it was about to become totally awful.

That means you have voluntarily left the labor force.

That's all it takes to be in the U5 rate (people jump to the U6, but that also includes PTers who would prefer to be FT. U5 is the one that includes marginally attached first). "Persons marginally attached to the labor force are those who currently are neither working nor looking for work but indicate that they want and are available for a job and have looked for work sometime in the past 12 months" - BLS

To be a discouraged is to have not looked in the last month . "Discouraged workers, a subset of the marginally attached, have given a job-market related reason for not currently looking for work." - BLS Currently is last four weeks. These people are included in U4.

U4 is only .4% higher than U3 (6.6%). That's the discouraged worker subset

U5 is .9% bigger than U4 (7.5%). that's the marginally attached subset.

Added together they are 1.3%. People who are seriously slowing down and de-emphasizing their job search. The big jump then is the 4.7% more who are PT but want FT. U6 is 12.2%

I was unemployed myself recently for over a year. I'm also obviously disabled so that doesn't help trust me. I get how depressing it is. I know jobs can be very difficult to find especially if you have restrictions not just like mine but in distance, education, criminal history, etc. But to not look, once, in an entire year absolutely puts the lie to the idea that you want one and are an active part of the labor force. Nobody who really wants to work will wait a year between attempts to find it.

U6: July 2013 followed by March thru July of 2014:

July` <------- 2014 ----------->
2013 Mar. Apr May June July
13.9 12.7 12.3 12.2 12.1 12.2

But yes, stalled since April.
http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t15.htm

U-6 data series
http://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS13327709

Last 20 years of U-6:


U-6 includes people who have looked for work any time in the past 12 months, plus part-timers who say they want full time work

I am not saying everything is great, but a 1%'er view on things is....

Just saying

Jim's 25 Investing Rules...
Jim's 10 Commandments...

http://www.thestreet.com/topic/45801/daily-booyah.html?cm_ven_int=navcramer

based on a quick look around. Not saying its BS at all, just saying it looked all, CNBC ish in there.

Hey, at least it was Cramer and not the knucklehead bond guy (not gonna write his name, too much of a ass) who gave the tea baggers their start wasn't in there!!!