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Agencies are cheering a Labor Department report that showed a growth of 200,00 jobs in December.
AP reports:
The nation added 200,000 jobs in December in a burst of hiring that drove the unemployment rate to its lowest in almost three years. The figures raised hopes that the economy might finally be healthy enough to power an even stronger job market.
Alan B. Krueger, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, stated:
Today's employment report provides further evidence that the economy is continuing to heal from the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.
This statement may be of little comfort to the long-term unemployed. The report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows:
The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) was little changed at 5.6 million and accounted for 42.5 percent of the unemployed.
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities gave a sobering look at the jobs report:
..a strong jobs recovery remains elusive. The overall jobs deficit remains large, the labor force shrank for the second straight month, and the proportion of people aged 16 and over who have a job remains depressed. Jobs are still hard to find, especially for the long-term unemployed.
Economist Dean Baker remarks that the touted 200,000 figure is not an accurate number of the jobs created:
We created 42,200 courier jobs in December. Was there really a big surge in hiring in the courier industry? Well, the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed a surge of more than 50,000 new courier jobs last December, all of which were gone in January and then some. In other words, pull out our 42,000 courier jobs and we are looking at job growth of 158,000, not much to celebrate.
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities further notes today:
As Baker bluntly notes today:
Coming out of a steep recession, we should be expected job growth in the 300k-400k monthly range. Unfortunately, there has been a huge effort to lower expectations so that we come to accept dismal economic performance as the best we can do.
***
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Agencies are cheering a Labor Department report that showed a growth of 200,00 jobs in December.
AP reports:
The nation added 200,000 jobs in December in a burst of hiring that drove the unemployment rate to its lowest in almost three years. The figures raised hopes that the economy might finally be healthy enough to power an even stronger job market.
Alan B. Krueger, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, stated:
Today's employment report provides further evidence that the economy is continuing to heal from the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.
This statement may be of little comfort to the long-term unemployed. The report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows:
The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) was little changed at 5.6 million and accounted for 42.5 percent of the unemployed.
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities gave a sobering look at the jobs report:
..a strong jobs recovery remains elusive. The overall jobs deficit remains large, the labor force shrank for the second straight month, and the proportion of people aged 16 and over who have a job remains depressed. Jobs are still hard to find, especially for the long-term unemployed.
Economist Dean Baker remarks that the touted 200,000 figure is not an accurate number of the jobs created:
We created 42,200 courier jobs in December. Was there really a big surge in hiring in the courier industry? Well, the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed a surge of more than 50,000 new courier jobs last December, all of which were gone in January and then some. In other words, pull out our 42,000 courier jobs and we are looking at job growth of 158,000, not much to celebrate.
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities further notes today:
As Baker bluntly notes today:
Coming out of a steep recession, we should be expected job growth in the 300k-400k monthly range. Unfortunately, there has been a huge effort to lower expectations so that we come to accept dismal economic performance as the best we can do.
***
Agencies are cheering a Labor Department report that showed a growth of 200,00 jobs in December.
AP reports:
The nation added 200,000 jobs in December in a burst of hiring that drove the unemployment rate to its lowest in almost three years. The figures raised hopes that the economy might finally be healthy enough to power an even stronger job market.
Alan B. Krueger, Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, stated:
Today's employment report provides further evidence that the economy is continuing to heal from the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.
This statement may be of little comfort to the long-term unemployed. The report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows:
The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) was little changed at 5.6 million and accounted for 42.5 percent of the unemployed.
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities gave a sobering look at the jobs report:
..a strong jobs recovery remains elusive. The overall jobs deficit remains large, the labor force shrank for the second straight month, and the proportion of people aged 16 and over who have a job remains depressed. Jobs are still hard to find, especially for the long-term unemployed.
Economist Dean Baker remarks that the touted 200,000 figure is not an accurate number of the jobs created:
We created 42,200 courier jobs in December. Was there really a big surge in hiring in the courier industry? Well, the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed a surge of more than 50,000 new courier jobs last December, all of which were gone in January and then some. In other words, pull out our 42,000 courier jobs and we are looking at job growth of 158,000, not much to celebrate.
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities further notes today:
As Baker bluntly notes today:
Coming out of a steep recession, we should be expected job growth in the 300k-400k monthly range. Unfortunately, there has been a huge effort to lower expectations so that we come to accept dismal economic performance as the best we can do.
***