by Frank Stricker September 8, 2023 The Numbers Tell an Ambiguous Story The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Employment Situation for August showed that unemployment rates were on the rise. The rate for Hispanics climbed from 4.4% to 4.9%, for whites from 3.1% to 3.4%, and for persons with disabilities from 6.9% to 7.4%. The Black… Read More Not Enough Jobs, Not Enough Good Jobs: The Unemployment Report for August 2023
by Frank Stricker Does the United States currently have a general labor shortage? Clearly there are problems in specific locations and occupations. There are shortages at 911 call-centers across the country. The U.S. Postal Service is short of staff. In Los Angeles County where I live, the government legal infrastructure is a mess; there are shortages… Read More The Unemployment Numbers for July. Is There a Worker Shortage?
by Frank Stricker July 12, 2023 There was not much excitement in Friday’s unemployment report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The unemployment rate fell a tenth of a percentage point to 3.6. For 15 months the rate has stayed in a range of 3.4 to 3.7%. From a conventional point of view, that is… Read More Job Numbers in June 2023: What’s the Message?
By FRANK STRICKER June 14, 2023 There was mixed news in the latest government job reports. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) household survey of workers in May had some real negatives. For one thing the official unemployment rate rose by .3 to 3.7%. That is still pretty low… Read More The Jobs Report for May 2023: A Mixed Bag
By Frank Stricker November 25, 2022 Employment and Unemployment The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) employment report for October was a mixed bag. The unemployment rate rose by 0.2% to 3.7% and there were 306,000 more unemployed people than in September. A rate of 3.7% is far from full employment. When one adds people who want… Read More Jobs: And the Beat Goes On for Now (October 2022 Labor Market Analysis)