- Feb 12, 2007
- 59,412
- 24,050
- 2,290
The Obama Administration is sure to spin the January jobs report as an improvement in the economy due to the headline figure of 9% unemployment, but the data bely a moribund jobs environment:
The Labor Force SHRANK by 504K in January.
Those who are not in the labor force increased by 319K (the full year increase is 2.2M).
The Civilian labor force participation rate dropped from 64.3 to 64.2 (in January 2010 it was 64.8).
Total non-farm employment increased by 36K, less than 1/3 the amount needed to just keep up with population growth.
The only reason unemployment has fallen is that more people have given up and are no longer counted by the government among the labor force and the unemployed.
http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.a.htm
The Labor Force SHRANK by 504K in January.
Those who are not in the labor force increased by 319K (the full year increase is 2.2M).
The Civilian labor force participation rate dropped from 64.3 to 64.2 (in January 2010 it was 64.8).
Total non-farm employment increased by 36K, less than 1/3 the amount needed to just keep up with population growth.
The only reason unemployment has fallen is that more people have given up and are no longer counted by the government among the labor force and the unemployed.
http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.a.htm
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