Low unemployment rate masks strained labor market

Source: McClatchy Newspapers

WASHINGTON: Bill Clinton's campaign famously defined the 1992 election with the phrase, "It's the economy, stupid." Today, "it's the jobs, stupid."

The latest employment figures, released in late January, showed a 52-month streak of job creation ending with a loss of 17,000 jobs in January. The Bush administration acknowledged the contraction, but pointed to the national unemployment rate of 4.9 percent to say that the labor market wasn't a harbinger of recession.

A closer look at unemployment data by McClatchy Newspapers, however, found that jobless Americans are spending more time looking for work and that those who can't find work now make up a greater share of the unemployed.

Several measures of unemployment, in fact, show that the workforce is under the kind of stress not seen since March 2001, when the U.S. economy entered a nine-month recession, followed by a so-called jobless recovery.


Read more: http://www.ohio.com/news/break_news/15740807.html

Bush and his minions look bad.

cause the kitchen's burned down to the ground.

just give me credit if you get that coveted DUzy.;)

Starting with the Raygun administration changing the rules so those whose unemployment benefits ran out are no longer counted as unemployed. Now comes the high percentage of Independent Contractors. Keeps employers from paying welfare benefits on their employees and does not count as unemployed. And then the supposed more than 30 percent in Florida of temporary employees. They are not counted as unemployed when they are not working because they have no unemployment benefits. Thus Low unemployment... See the 3 percent rate in Tampa and the street corners filled with unemployed people.

When "Poppy" was in office, they changed the way the U.S. figured inflation by assuming that people would always be able to buy every product at the lowest retail price. In effect, the gubmint assumes that every American buys everything at Wal-Mart.

So inflation figures appear a lot lower than they would be if you were a person living in the real world and not the hypothetical 7 day a week Wal-Mart shopper.

Gasoline 50% plus, food 20% plus, property tax, homeowners insurance, medications... The things a retiree cannot avoid paying for, and a COL of 2.3% last year. Oh, and I forgot interest savings rates almost worthless.

Energy, food, taxes, on and on...there are so many factors that are arbitrarily removed that a significant change - like for instance gasoline prices doubling under Duhbya - doesn't register a blip until years later.

These factors don't register on Wall Street, either, but they matter a lot on Main Street. Average Americans are in dire economic straits not just because of Bush's failures, but because of the total failure of Reaganism. G.H.W. Bush was correct to call Ronnie Reagan's policies "Voodoo Economics." That he then joined Reagan and helped him implement those policies reserves for him a very lengthy and painful eternity in Hell.

Being unemployed doesn't count because you don't count because you have no unemployment benefits left to collect. YOU DO NOT COUNT so get over it seems to be the message! :argh:

Note: Not having a great day today. I think I have the damn flu just like everyone else.

The fact is, the unemployment figures are bogus and have always been bogus in this country.
I always find it ironic that conservatives will point to the high unemployment rates in countries like France or Norway or Germany when the USA is compared unfavorably to them on a variety of issues. I am much more inclined to believe another countries unemployment statistics than I am to believe this country's cooked books.

Since the Raygun admin, the unemployment have absolutely no real value except to identify those receiving benefits at any given moment.

I spent 3 years on the Raygun years with out a job yet was never counted as unemployed because I graduated college and there simply were no jobs.
I worked a few part time jobs that would only last a week or two just to get by with enough to eat.

Jobs were few and far between during the Reagan Recession

We had two little girls to feed and I was working seven days a week just so I could barely do it.

That was the reality of the "Reagan Miracle" for a lot of regular folks. The 2001-2009 Duhbya debacle is the brainless grandchild of Reaganism.

because I don't collect unemployment.

They lie about everything - why would you believe 'Low" numbers from THEM?

as freelancers, since we were both downsized from IBM and Kodak in 2002-03. Pulling in about half of what we were making with those companies, but we've been getting by--just (knock on wood). This year, however, we've been told that it's all very iffy with our current company. I'm polishing up my resume and hoping for a $25,000-30,000 (full-time) job in a few months. Sans bennies, of course. I'll be grateful for that much.

Job creation under BushCo has not kept pace with the growth of the working age population. Wages have been stagnant at best for 80% or more of American workers. The labor force participation rate has declined under BushCo, after decades of steady increases.

The "recovery" under BushCo has been entirely lopsided, just like his tax cuts, just like his law enforcemnt (the rule of law doesn't apply to the wealthy and the powerful). People are FINALLY getting wise to this, and that's why voters in every state are turning out in record numbers to vote Democratic. The change we're voting for is a return to Democracy - of the people, by the people, for the people.

saying some of the politicians. What are they going to
retrain us to do work at McDonald's or make beds? No one
is hiring anyone and thousands are being laid off. Even
the states are laying of workers. It is a joke if
they think we cannot see the economy for what it truly is.

The video game industry is doing just fine.. These guys hound me. Certainly for software engineers.
(in fact, they didn't start hounding me till recently)

How about some truth in advertizing for a change?

most of the jobs that have been created during the past seven years have been low paying jobs that nobody can live on. All the while of course the fat cats just keep getting richer and richer.

would cause inflation. Then they started fixing the numbers and it was always under 5% and there was never much inflation.

Lies. Plain and simple. Anyone who takes Bushie numbers at face value is a fool of the order of magntiude of anyone who believed a Soviet Toilet Paper Production Report in 1977.