Unemployment Rate matches lowest point in half a century

[Ridgerunner]

I believe he bragged about making advances on a married woman on that tape. That’s still a no-no in our society.

Yup. Certainly for most of us, even though he didn’t get it done. That’s not disqualifying for the office, though, or there would have been some big gaps in the presidency over the years.

 

[Zzyzx_Road]

So the ballyhooed UI rate dropped yet again. But the real picture is seen when one does a deep dive into the numbers. That is this: only people who have applied to one or more jobs and not found work in the last 4 weeks prior to the survey are counted in that 3.8%. Looking at the labor force participation rate gives a much truer picture of the volume of unemployed and underemployed. Concurrent with the lowest official rate in a couple of decades we also have the highest ever count of adult Americans age 18-64 not in the work force. Some 95.6 million people in this category today. I’ll grant that a fair number of these people are one of disabled, students, homemakers, gig workers and so forth. But that still leaves tens of millions on the outside looking in. So it continues to fry my brains that we keep letting in the numbers of immigrants, legal and illegal, that we do.

When 4 million Americans enter the work force every year in the face of these demographics and government insists on admitting up to 1.5 million more legal immigrants plus who knows how many illegal immigrants every year at the behest of big business and big progressive donors, one shouldn’t be surprised at the numbers Trump keeps getting. Nor should anyone be surprised that real wages for working class Americans have not risen since 1973. Charity and jobs begin at home and in my neighborhood, not on the other side of the border.

 

[7_Sorrows]

7_sorrows, despite your prodigious use of exclamation points, your post is not accurate. Just look upthread at the graph of the steadily-declining unemployment rate starting in 2010

i don’t go by graphs, i go by reality and what real people were experiencing.
the real estate recession was still serious in 2010 and people still had trouble finding employment in 2010.

 

[ProVobis]

You’re right. He isn’t the first if he did but it didn’t seem to hurt his celebrity status.

But what the heck are the Evangelicals doing by endorsing him?

 

[PaulinVA]

PaulinVA:

7_sorrows, despite your prodigious use of exclamation points, your post is not accurate. Just look upthread at the graph of the steadily-declining unemployment rate starting in 2010

i don’t go by graphs, i go by reality and what real people were experiencing.
the real estate recession was still serious in 2010 and people still had trouble finding employment in 2010.

But, 7-sorrows, that’s not what you were arguing in uour post. You said that there was no job growth under Obama. That simply isn’t true.

And, arguing with anecdotes and personal opinion when others are discussing the data isn’t really useful

 

[7_Sorrows]

7_Sorrows:

PaulinVA:

7_sorrows, despite your prodigious use of exclamation points, your post is not accurate. Just look upthread at the graph of the steadily-declining unemployment rate starting in 2010

i don’t go by graphs, i go by reality and what real people were experiencing.
the real estate recession was still serious in 2010 and people still had trouble finding employment in 2010.

But, 7-sorrows, that’s not what you were arguing in uour post. You said that there was no job growth under Obama. That simply isn’t true.

And, arguing with anecdotes and personal opinion when others are discussing the data isn’t really useful

but PaulinVA. the graph proves my point.
it took from 2010 to almost 2016 for the unemployment rate to get down to 5%.
during those years people were suffering and had a difficult time finding work.
the last 12 months of his term rates
were finally reaching a low level. other than the stock market during the Great Recession, everything was down.

 

[TheLittleLady]

Most simply give up. Used to make a middle class wage, now in their 50’s and the idea of starting again for $11 an hour at a menial job “just suck it up and work your way up again!” is not exactly as easy as it sounds. In the campaign, they were worked into an emotional frenzy and told their manufacturing jobs would come back. They were manipulated for votes.

 

[Ridgerunner]

But there’s no reason to think they’re the same people, and good reason to think otherwise.

A very large number of people in their 50s and who have worked in manufacturing their whole lives are not really employable in industry anymore unless their job is supervisory. Even then, it’s not easy because most industrial jobs require a certain degree of “focused” athleticism. People who lose those jobs know they’re not likely to get them back even if manufacturing makes a big comeback.

Those who found promises of return of manufacturing jobs attractive would have been younger people; some of whom had had such jobs in the past and some of whom never did.

 

[Theo520]

Most simply give up. Used to make a middle class wage, now in their 50’s and the idea of starting again for $11 an hour at a menial job “just suck it up and work your way up again!” is not exactly as easy as it sounds. In the campaign, they were worked into an emotional frenzy and told their manufacturing jobs would come back. They were manipulated for votes.

That’s a cute little story you’ve created in your mind.
For the most part, those manufacturing jobs left 15-30 yrs ago, the workers have already transitioned to something else. HOWEVER, manufacturing jobs will increase in the US if we transition back towards balanced trade rather than persistent and massive trade deficits.

Maybe they are thinking of jobs for their kids that pay a living wage?

 

[PaulinVA]

Most simply give up. Used to make a middle class wage, now in their 50’s and the idea of starting again for $11 an hour at a menial job “just suck it up and work your way up again!” is not exactly as easy as it sounds. In the campaign, they were worked into an emotional frenzy and told their manufacturing jobs would come back. They were manipulated for votes.

Well, what people need to remember is that the manufacturing jobs didn’t just go to China. First, they went to robots, and then went to China. The robots aren’t going to go away.

 

[TheLittleLady]

I’m actually speaking of people in my extended family and friends. People who pulled that lever so they could get back to the job they lost, but, thanks for the condescension

 

[TheLittleLady]

I did not stand in front of crowds and promise to bring back the jobs. People believed what they were told.

 

[ProVobis]

Doesn’t matter what occupation. If you are out of work, you have no leverage and you’re at the mercy of a prospective employer. Once employed you then can negotiate.

 

[Theo520]

ise to bring back the jobs. People believed what they were told.

Why do you imply he’s not making progress on those promises?
Unemployment rate continues to drop, especially for minorities
Regs that really hurt energy sector have adjusted

He’ll be judged over his full 1-2 terms, these are not goals accomplished by himself in a couple months.

Why do you imagine the anecdotal comments from your relatives reflect all conservatives.
Also, how long ago did they lose their manufacturing jobs?

 

[joeybaggz]

but PaulinVA. the graph proves my point.
it took from 2010 to almost 2016 for the unemployment rate to get down to 5%.
during those years people were suffering and had a difficult time finding work.
the last 12 months of his term rates
were finally reaching a low level. other than the stock market during the Great Recession, everything was down.

I am amazed no one has posted the real reason behind the drop in unemployment. In the first two years that was the Obama disaster, unemployment went through the roof. Then in 2010 it began to trend downward and has continued that way ever since. Why, SIMPLE.
Subtract 1945 from 2010 and what do you get. Mandatory retirement age, that’s what. And why is 1945 crucial to this fact, because that is the first year of the 4million births per year of THE BABY BOOM. in 2010, those 65 year olds began to retire. Then in 2011, another 4 million, then in 2012, another 4million and on and on. Now not every one of the 4M per year was employed, and not every one retired at 65. But those born in 1945 who continued working are now 72 year old. Retiring finally. And this will go on every year.
I was born in 1947. I am 70 years old. I still work, why, because one, the administration that was the Obamination destroyed the economy and destroyed an awful lot of business with that idiot’s economic policies (although wishful thinking is probably a better term) So, having lost everything, I need the income. And I like my work, part time that it is. So I will continue to work for a while. But three of my close friends who are 70 still work, but each has indicated that they will hang it up this Dec 31. So three more jobs will open up.
Obama didn’t create any jobs, and I doubt Trump has either. It is just that the Baby Boom is gradually passing from history. It is all just a matter of addition by subtraction.

 

[7_Sorrows]

except that a lot of people lost their 401K and their investment portfolio in 2007-2008. many seniors who had planned to retire, couldn’t and some were forced to
come out of retirement to look for work.
some people just stopped looking.
many also lost the equity they had in their
homes and many lost their homes.
i know that 2008-2015 were really bad years for our economy. other than somehow the stock market recovered and kept going!

 

[Theo520]

Pretty exciting data

Unemployment Rate by Race

This interactive chart compares the historical unemployment rate for the three largest ethnic groups in the United States. Note: Statistics for Asian unemployment are not included here as the Bureau of Labor Statistics did not start including this measure until 2000 and does not provide a...

www.macrotrends.net

Even people without a HS diploma are getting jobs

Unemployment Rate by Educational Level

This interactive chart compares the historical unemployment rate based on the level of education attained for individuals 25 years and over. Categories include those without a high school diploma, those with a high school diploma but no college, individuals with some college or an associate's...

www.macrotrends.net

 

[TheLittleLady]

This is fruitless back and forth.

I can post videos of then Candidate Trump working crowds into a frenzy and promising the good jobs would come back. You will find some way to dance around them.

 

[Theo520]

I can post videos of then Candidate Trump working crowds into a frenzy and promising the good jobs would come back. You will find some way to dance around them.

And I supported that assertion.
If we move towards balanced trade, we will do more manufacturing

That’s basic economics, not the same as promising they would get their old jobs back.
The new jobs will not be the old jobs, but they will likely pay better than stocking shelves or being a walmart greeter.

It now sounds like you were just mocking your relatives.

 

[ProVobis]

Aside from what Trump thinks is fair, why don’t you think it’s balanced now? Aren’t there service jobs whose price is negotiated between parties part of the equation? Seems like all Trump is looking at are manufacturing and hotel jobs.