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 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 May 15, 2023 On May 4, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released its job report for April. Unemployment fell a tenth of a point to 3.4%, and 235,000 jobs were added by non-farm employers. In most demographic categories, the unemployment rate fell by a tenth of a percent or more. The… Read More The Job Situation in April: Still Not Bad Enough
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)
By FRANK STRICKER Here are four key points to consider about the December 2021 Jobs report. 1. Just Pretty Good. This is not a bad job report. Even though we in the National Jobs for All Network believe it is a serious undercount, a 3.9% unemployment rate is historically quite a low official unemployment rate. And… Read More More Recovery and Reform, Please! The Employment Situation—December 2021