Job Market Monitor
United States
Coal Miner in US / Jobs are vanishing
Coal mine employment in the U.S. has dropped nearly 20% in the past two years as the industry comes under intense competition from natural gas, according to data from SNL energy. From a recent high of about 94,000 in Q4 2011, mining jobs have fallen to about 77,000. Last year, natural gas matched coal in … Continue reading
US Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report / An increase of 8,000 from last week
SEASONALLY ADJUSTED DATA In the week ending February 8, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 339,000, an increase of 8,000 from the previous week’s unrevised figure of 331,000. The 4-week moving average was 336,750, an increase of 3,500 from the previous week’s revised average of 333,250. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment … Continue reading
US / Long-term unemployment has less impact on the behavior of wages study says
How tight is the labor market? The unemployment rate is down substantially from its October 2009 peak, but two-thirds of the decline is due to people dropping out of the labor force. In addition, an unusually large share of the unemployed has been out of work for twenty-seven weeks or more—the long-duration unemployed. These statistics … Continue reading
US Monetary Policy / The recovery in the labor market is far from complete says Yellen
Just because the unemployment rate is falling rapidly, don’t think for a minute that the economy is close to a full recovery. That’s the message Janet Yellen delivered in her first appearance on Capitol Hill since she took the reins of the Federal Reserve. Follow along with MarketWatch’s live blog of Janet Yellen’s testimony. Speaking … Continue reading
Home Depot / More than 80,000 temporary employees will be hired to prepare for the spring
Home Depot Inc. (HD:US), the largest U.S. home-improvement retailer, plans to add the same number of part-time workers for its busiest sales season as it did in 2013, capitalizing on rising demand for home renovations. More than 80,000 temporary employees will be hired to prepare for the spring, when Americans traditionally spend more to fix … Continue reading
Labor Force Participation in US / A Chart
The unemployment rate reached its Obama administration peak in October 2009, at 10 percent. Since then, it has fallen steadily, but unevenly, to its current low. The unemployment rate has fallen, though, partly because of people giving up looking for work. Those who are unemployed, but no longer looking for work, are not included in … Continue reading
US / Young college graduates are outperforming their peers with less education
For those who question the value of college in this era of soaring student debt and high unemployment, the attitudes and experiences of today’s young adults—members of the so-called Millennial generation—provide a compelling answer. On virtually every measure of economic well-being and career attainment—from personal earnings to job satisfaction to the share employed full time—young … Continue reading
Obamacare and Jobs / CBO Says Relax Everyone
Last week, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office issued its analysis of Obamacare — the Affordable Care and Patient Protection Act — finding that under the act, about 2.5 million workers would leave the workforce by 2024 as a result of the act’s provisions. Republicans immediately seized on the CBO finding, claiming the report proved that … Continue reading
US federal workforce / The three episodes of cuts
There have been three modern episodes in which federal employees have been cut during a presidential administration: the post-World War II demobilization under president Harry S Truman (1945-53); the Cold War peace dividend and budget cuts under president Clinton (1992-2000); and now Obama, who has downsized the federal government during the recession. Here’s a comparison: via … Continue reading
US / Income inequality is now near a record high reports a Senate Joint Economic Committee
Recent economic news has been encouraging. Gross domestic product (GDP) has grown for 10 straight quarters (growing by 4.1 percent at an annual rate in the third quarter of 2013), the economy has added private-sector jobs for 46 consecutive months and the housing market continues to strengthen. Despite the current economic recovery, the income inequality … Continue reading
US / Black Teen Unemployment Jumps to 38%
The black teen unemployment rate spiked to 38% in January. The dramatic increase represented almost a 10% increase over December’s 35.5% unemployment rate. Overall, the teen unemployment rate for all races was 21%, a modest increase from December. Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at Black Teen Unemployment Jumps to 38%.
US / What about the Employment Rate ?
The unemployment rate gets all the press, but the employment rate has been improving lately too. The number of Americans working as a proportion of the overall populace — called the employment-population ratio — rose to 58.8% in January. That level was last consistently seen in 2009. Still, the measure remains well below its prerecession … Continue reading
The decline of middle-class workers / Job polarisation and wages
Employment in traditional middle-class jobs has fallen sharply over the last few decades. At the same time, middle-class wages have been stagnant. This column reviews recent research on job polarisation and presents a new study that explicitly links job polarisation with the changes in workers’ wages. Job polarisation has a substantial negative effect on middle-skill … Continue reading
US Declining Labor Force Participation / Aging of the population not the only factor
The aging of the population is not the sole contributing factor in the decline in labor force participation since 2007, contrary to what some have suggested. The participation rate has declined for every age bracket below 54 years old. The effects of these declines can be seen in the figure below. For each age range, we have calculated … Continue reading
US / Top 10 Auto Repair Jobs In 2013
AutoMD.com today released its list of the Top Ten Auto Repair Jobs for 2013. Standard wear and tear jobs dominated, with Brake Pad replacement coming in at number one, and other cyclical repair jobs, such as Alternator, Water Pump, Timing Belt and Spark Plug replacement rounding out the list. The company also looked at the … Continue reading
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