US

US Job Report – This month report shouldn’t make a mandate

The number of unemployed and the unemployment rate increase. But employment too. So, this is a sign that participation is going up, a generally good sign. Since July, the economy has created an average of 173,000 jobs a month, up from 67,000 a month from April through June. But still, the proportion of american in … Continue reading →

US – Productivity increases modestly

Nonfarm productivity increased at a modest pace in the third quarter, giving little sign that businesses are poised to ramp up hiring significantly. Productivity, which measures hourly output per worker, increased at a 1.9 percent annual rate, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Many economists would read a drop in productivity as a sign that … Continue reading →

US – October factory activity falls to 37-month low

Manufacturing grew in October at its slowest pace in more than three years and appeared likely to act as a drag on overall growth in the final months of 2012, an industry survey showed on Thursday. Financial information firm Markit said its U.S. Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index fell to 51.0 this month, below a preliminary … Continue reading →

US – Unemployment Claims : Still An Uncertain Job Market Outlook with a a decrease of 9,000

SEASONALLY ADJUSTED DATA In the week ending October 27, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 363,000, a decrease of 9,000 from the previous week’s revised figure of 372,000. The 4-week moving average was 367,250, a decrease of 1,500 from the previous week’s revised average of 368,750. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment … Continue reading →

Indiana CoC – Targeting Middle Skills Gap

The Indiana Chamber of Commerce has launched a website to help bridge the so-called “middle skills” gap. Vice President of Education and Workforce Development Derek Redelman tells Inside INdiana Business he regularly hears from companies seeking employees to fill openings requiring more than a high school diploma, but less than a four-year college degree and … Continue reading →

US – Job Growth During the Recovery

“Congress in recent years passed a number of bills intended in part to jump-start a recovery in the labor market from the recession that began in December 2007” writes Linda Levine in Job Growth During the Recovery (Adapted excerpts by JMM to follow). What was the labor market’s response to these measures ?  How well the … Continue reading →

Newell Rubbermaid – Over 1,900 jobs to be cut

Newell Rubbermaid plans to cut more than 1,900 jobs, or about 10 per cent of its worldwide workforce, over the next two and a half years. The consumer products company, known for Sharpie pens and its namesake containers, said Friday that all savings from the job cuts will be reinvested into growing its brands globally … Continue reading →

Public sector jobs crowding out private jobs – Sheer mystical gobbledygook writes Krugman

Both Dean Baker and Josh Bivens weigh in Robert Samuelson’s outburst at the New York Times for saying that the government can too create jobs. (He went so far as to call it “flat-earth” thinking). Sadly, Samuelson’s attitude is widely shared — even, at least rhetorically, by Barack Obama. So let me not focus on … Continue reading →

Federal Reserve – US unemployment “remains elevated”

The Federal Reserve has reiterated that the US economy is only growing slowly, and that the country’s unemployment rate “remains elevated”. Yet it added that the housing market had “shown some further signs of improvement”. The comments came as the US central bank kept interest rates on hold at between zero and 0.25%, as had … Continue reading →

US – Unemployment Claims : An Uncertain Job Market Outlook

After last week announcement of an increase of 34,000, DOL says that Unemployment Inssurrance Claims dropped by 23,000. The real job market coudn’t be that volatile. But it shows how incertain is the job market outlook. -*-   SEASONALLY ADJUSTED DATA In the week ending October 20, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 369,000, a … Continue reading →

Reverse Brain Drain – IT – India / US: Over half of Indian IT professionals returning

“Early April, Corp-Corp conducted a survey among Indian IT professionals. More than 1000 professionals responded to this survey. The results show more than half of the Indian IT professionals are planning to return to India.” writes corp-corp.com on its Blog. Survey Highlights (adapted excerpts) 50.1% of the people said that they will be returning to … Continue reading →

US – New home sales to near 2-1/2 year high

New single-family home sales surged in September to their highest level in nearly 2-1/2 years, further evidence the housing market recovery is gaining steam. The Commerce Department said on Wednesday sales increased 5.7 percent to a seasonally adjusted 389,000-unit annual rate – the highest level since April 2010, when sales were boosted by a tax … Continue reading →

Older Workers / Unemployment Duration / US : Chances of finding another job are low

“After reaching record highs month after month, the typical length of time a jobless worker in the United States has been unemployed finally fell in April’ 2011, to “only” 38.3 weeks. But the outlook is looking bleaker for the nation’s older workers.” wrote Catherine Rampell in Older Workers Without Jobs Face Longest Time Out of … Continue reading →

Participation Historical Paterns: The unemployment rate today would be 9.3%

Some people — notably Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney — have argued that to get the “real” unemployment rate, we should add back all the people who have left the labor force and consider them unemployed. Doing that gives an unemployment rate of around 11%, depending on what month you choose for a baseline. But … Continue reading →

Skills Gap in the US Economy (video)