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MARIO ANZUONI / Reuters
The construction industry has been hit hard in the economic downturn.
The glum headline numbers in Friday's monthly employment report, showing that the jobless rate rose to 9.8 percent in November as the anemic economy failed to create many jobs, don't even tell the full extent of the nation's No. 1 economic problem.
In addition to the 15.1 million unemployed Americans, another 9 million were working part-time in November -- not because they wanted more time at home with the kids or to focus on school, but because they couldn’t get enough hours of work.
That number of so-called involuntary part-time workers, reported as part of the government's monthly employment report, has remained persistently high throughout the recession and is currently about double what it was when the recession began in December 2007.
It’s yet another reminder that the nation’s employment problems go beyond just those who don’t have a job at all.
A broader measure of unemployment, which includes the involuntary part-time workers plus those who want to work but haven’t looked for a job recently, was unchanged at 17 percent in November. Only 39,000 jobs were added to payrolls last month, far less than expected after 172,000 jobs were added in October.
About two-thirds of involuntary part-time workers have had their hours cut because their employer did not have enough work for them. Others have a part-time job but are looking for a full-time one.
Marisa Di Natale, an economist with Moody’s Analytics who follows labor trends, said there have been some positive signs, especially for workers who have had their hours cut in the recession. The average workweek was at 33.5 hours in November, down slightly from October but up from a low of around 33 hours.
Di Natale says that shows that some employers who cut back may be giving their workers more hours. As the economy recovers, employers frequently boost hours for existing employees before hiring new ones, she said.
“You’re not going to see a lot of hiring until their current work force is sort of tapped out, as much as it can possibly be,” she said.
Still, the weak recovery will likely mean that it could take some time for those millions of people who want more hours to return to full-time work.
“It is something that is bound to be well above historical norms for a very long time,” said Mike Montgomery, U.S. economist with IHS Global Insight.
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Gee, where are the over 90,000 jobs that were created, per news articles?? And yes, jobs jumped in October, but that was mostly part-time retail work which will disappear come January.
U3 is not an accurate indicator of unemployment. There are many people who want a job but they do not qualify for benefits and they are not counted! Real unemployment is about 18-22% right now.
http://www.kondratieffwavecycle.com/unemployment/
Employment is a function of money supply. With a deflating money supply, existing prices and salaries cannot be sustained. This is a deflationary crash. M3 is deflating.
http://www.kondratieffwavecycle.com/economy/deflation-how-to-survive-it/
...probably followed all the rest offshore...
India: http://www.payscale.com/research/IN/Job=Information_Technology
US: http://www.payscale.com/research/US/Job=Information_Technology
Current exchange rate, http://www.xe.com/ucc/convert.cgi?Amount=926366&From=INR&To=USD
Just maddening, for a $100K IT consulting job this is a gap of nearly $80K ($79,000+) with India. Corporations get five IT workers in India for the cost of one US worker. The story is basically the same with Eastern European countries and their cheap labor. Corporations feign poverty while we loose our jobs and offshore workers seldom make enough to even buy themselves a used car...
http://www.cardekho.com/used-cars/used-Toyota-cars.htm
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Corporate-Profits-Were-the-nytimes-3994329548.html
and this dirge keeps playing on...
Yes, that's right. Be honest. Stop spreading lies because Steve Forbes doesn't want to stop making us envy the jerks on his list. Things are bad, and only the human spirit is a marvelous thing. As long as we can now force the wealthy to look at their selfishness directly, we might be able to chip their ice-chipped hearts.
Typical greedy jealous liberal response. You'd rather steal from someone who actually worked their asses off to earn it rather than get off your own behind.
Look, if all you have to scream is "liberal" and "socialist" and, really, nothing but soundbytes that don't relate to reality, could you go find me a rational conservative, please? My intelligent, respectful, conservative friends are offended by your nonsense.
How about just fixing the problem and worry later who is right or who is wrong (liberal or conservative). We spend tooooo much time pointing fingers, and life is too short.
Whatever - have you ever worked for a poor person?? Has that poor person provided you benefits?? In order for for jobs to be created we do have to cut taxes for the rich and businesses. Human spirit, while great in thought, doesn't pay bills. While i admire the idea to take down those that have black hearts, at this point in time, its not possible. At some point, liberal or not, people have to blaming people and past presidents, current and future presidents, we have to just have to find solutions to the problem. Tax breaks are one. Allowing them to stay rich is another. Thinking that it is our duty to tell people what to do with their money, well, then we have been blinded by the "give me that" mentality. That is the poison in our society. We do not have a right to anything but our freedom. Other peoples hard work is not for the taking.
Yet many will say end unemployment benefits because they're lazy.
Many are not lazy and many are. The ones who are not lazy deserve all the help we can give them for as long as it takes to find new employement the lazy ones deserve (and should get ) nothing. The problem is sorting out who belongs in which group :-(
What is the criteria for distinguishing between the truly deserving and the rotten malingerers? And who gets to decide? You are right, that is the conundrum - how to help people with a hand up, not a hand out.
It hurt me deeply to hear people call those of us out of work lazy because I'm out of work. I just recently got a part time job but NEED full time. I have a notebook full of job searches. Every day I'm looking.
I'm a college grad and a military veteran....that used to be a guaranteed job interview, I've had less than ten in the ten months I've been out of work.
Hi ghostwriter,
I know what you mean. My husband was laid off about a week after our daughter was born. This was almost a year and-a-half ago. He's still out of work. He has a lot of experience in warehouse work, but it's just not enough to get anything, I guess. We are both going to college for business administration degrees and it's very frustrating when people just do not understand the severity of our situations. We live in Michigan in the highest unemployed county and every time a job comes up, thousands apply. It's like a frenzy when you go to try to hand your resume in to an employer.
I think many people just don't have compassion because they don't know what it's like to be unemployed. I hope that they never lose their jobs because it just makes you feel lousy. I wish they could understand what it's like for those who are unemployed, but looking diligently every day for work.
I have been lucky and only took a pay cut in this economy. I have never been unemployed but have survived no less that 8 rounds of layoffs in my career. I know there is nothing anyone can say to make you feel better but i DO feel for you. Keep your head up and keep looking. There is light at the end of the tunnel even though it may not seem like it. Good Luck.
I agreed with wolffchad, I've got a noticed that my last day is Dec.31 and will become one of the many millions of unemployed but I know God has something better have to believe it. Things happen for a reason and I know God will provide. Good luck to everyone
many are unemployed and are not lazzy.they need help to take care of their families and bills.im working a part time job cause its all i could find.im going back to school to learned a new job skill.im doing the best i can just like everyone else
To ghostwriter56, believe me, I understand. I have existed on temporary work the last two years and would love to have a full-time job. I have good references and a degree, neither of which have gotten me anywhere. Yes, there are people out there who take advantage of the system, and unfortunately, there always will be. Like you, it is very painful to be lumped in with that class of individual. Good luck, I look every day right along with you.
Thousands of corporations have closed their doors here and opened them overseas. Our own government has supported this move. Time for a new leadership and time to HEAVILY fine ALL AMERICAN entities that strip our country of jobs. INTEL has opened plants in several countries that cost AMERICANS several thousand jobs. CHEAP LABOR!!!!!!!
When you go shopping for a product that is available from several different sources, do you shop around for the lowest price or do you pay the highest price available? If the same work can be done from any place, why wouldn't the business owner find a place with the lowest price just like your customer is going to do when purchasing your product?
American companies are already heavily fined by paying the highest corporate tax rate in the world. Of course, they are going to have to cut costs somewhere else.
If you want them to keep all jobs in the States and pay whatever the employees think they deserve, the cost of the goods produced will go up and then the same people bitching about overseas jobs will be bitching about "price gouging." Costs go up, prices go up. Costs are low, prices stay low. See how that works? You can't have cheap goods and expensive labor.
With the unemployment rate hitting 9.8 %, many of the unemployed feel finding a job is not a viable option. An interesting and informative book, BoomerPreneurs, written by M.B. Izard offers solutions through a 4-step process specifically for boomers wanting to start a business.
Professor Izard is a well known author and scholar of Entrepreneurship and is an advocate for assisting baby boomers in their entrepreneurial endeavors.
The book is widely availabe through Acheve Consulting, Amazon.com, Barnesandnoble.com etc.
Sounds like Professor Izzard has found a way to make a buck - for himself!
The United Sates of America is the greatest country in the world. We sent a man to the moon. We must create a full-time job that pays a living wage for all Americans that want one. We must require all Americans to provide at least 8 years of federal service. You must work for the federal government for 8 years doing what ever is needed.
Why do you think US Chamber of Commerce was able to spend so much money on the past elections? the Corporations have become rich and the Government of US has become poor. Republicans would want to keep it that way as it lends fuel for their ideal that there should be no control on business. They are also against the middle class they would be content if whole of America worked on little Piza Stores or Macdonalds while people in India and China got all the high paying jobs shipped to their shores.
As for the American people they can be made to vote for the Republicans by scaring them of the poor humble Mexican immigrant who wants to work in the fields for a pittance as if that was the cause of the recession or of course you can rake up the age old issue of abortion
The Republican's definition of lazy - unemployed. Chicken crap!
No one seems to care about the mountain of debt we are piling on our children and grandchildren. No one seems to care that China owns more of us than we do. Greedy little folks with their hands out standing in front of the fire place screaming for heat not willing to go out and find dry wood to throw on the fire. Rather, have it taken from someone else's woodpile who had the will to get out and get er done. Its time to be responsible.
For thousands of years, chinese people either starve to death or do business. They didn't even know God could save them by sitting on their butt and wait for God to deliver. Some rich Christian dreams of great wealth living like a king with oppression upon the poor to work for them as servants. Some rich Chinese dreams of retiring on a farm to raise some chickens, and have insurance during a drought when one can't even sqeeze a potatoe out of the ground.
Going out to get woods is call stealing and not the same as doing business to get woods. Not all woods are free. Smarty pants christian kind sure knows how to write well from the bench at church.
suddenly in the midst of a crisis the Republicans get all worried about money. Not a word was said when George Bush was tripling yes tripling the national debt.
Not a word was said when Ronald Reagan, who single-handedly murdered America, also tripled the national debt, and HE got away with not even remembering what he did! AND HE'S REVERED BY REPUBLICANS!
So now that a black guy (the real issue) is spending the money, everyone acts like the trillion dollars belongs to them and if we didn't spend it on those who need it, everything would be fine. Except of course those without jobs because of George Bush's fake economy would be begging on the streets and then the delusional Republicans would be banging the drum about cleaning up the streets and we'd spend even more money on law enforcement.
And all the while they need to get on these boards and call names. it's like we never left the playground with these people.
how could a secret society of christian paladins blessed onced by the pope, have what it takes to judge others for their deed?
failure of superiority to demostrate a greater moral fortitude, failure of superiority to demonstrate a holier spiritual path that benefits the many, and failure of basic conviction of belief.
To run and hide is no so shameful because it is proper christian ways. TO stay for the light and be exposed as christian ways stinking up a load. How does these chrisitans earn a living ?
If you think things are bad now wait until after Christmas when the part timers get laid off. Also you can be guaranteed that you will lose your part time job if the business you work gets a 15% tax increase in the new year.
Wall Street rallys and Main Street gets the shaft... unemplyment numbers are sugar coated and still look awful. As for any investor claiming that "they work their ass off," sure, if ripping off pension funds and bankrupting a nation counts as work... I guess you have been busy. Things are not getting better... and unemployment extensions are about to end; the last election pretty much ensured it. If you think the last two years have been bad, just wait... you haven't seen anything yet!
I have a doctorate in education and 30 years of experience. I currently work 6 part-time jobs (and have been doing this now for almost 5 years) and barely make it 'til the end of the month. I would probably do OK if I didn't have to pay my own health insurance (almost the same amount as my mortgage) and the school loans (these should be forgiven in this economy, I think!). However, I am honest and still keep paying my bills and struggle through. I've lost a couple jobs this year because I had surgery for cancer, but I still earn too much to get any unemployment, or get a modification on my home loan. Go figure.
Corporations have been manipulating hours for decades to force low paid employees into part time positions. This is not new news and it is something that should have been addressed long ago. The reasons for corporations doing this is to reduce overhead by not having to put in funds for unemployment insurance not having to provide access to insurance. This reduces the costs of employees by 10% or so as I recall making more profit for the companies and making a lower standard of living for the employees. The only reason this is coming to the fore now is that the economy has gotten worse and there are simply more people being maniuplated into part time/temporary jobs than there were in the past.
The company I work for has a lot of part time employees because that is what our business needs. We run a 24 hour operation and there are peaks during the day and night where we need a lot of employees for 4 hours and then only a fraction of that number until later that day when we will need a lot of employees for 4 hours again. We can not pay all of those people to work for 4 hours and stand around with nothing to do for 4 hours.
It is a union company and the union is ok with having a lot of part timers as long as the full timers have free insurance and make $70k+ per year. Part time employees do receive fully employer paid health insurance (after one year -- too many people were getting hired, using the insurance for an issue, and then quitting so they had to put a one year restriction in place.) There is a big difference between the pay rate for full time and part time employees $30 (top union rate) vs $9 (starting part time rate) but that is all negotiated by the union....which always heavily favors the long term, full time employees at the negotiation table.
All employers pay unemployment insurance on every employee, including part time. They may pay a little less over all because UI is a percentage of the employee's earnings up to a certain dollar amount. Federal is 0.8% of the first $7000 the employee earns in a year. States rates and wage bases vary.
I wonder about those tax cuts in 2001 and 03 back in the day when we had a budget surplus. I thought those cuts were suppose to spur job growth? All I really see it spuring is pure speculation. How employers have been exploiting the lack of work to treat workers like dirt. Then the wall st crowd that the government gave all that cash too after they lost all their money on bad bets in the housing market. Then we have the coporations flush with cash but not hiring and saying we need more tax cuts The rich people have all the money now and i guess they just figure they can keep squeezing because no one will stop their greedy behinds.
Gotta love the spin in that article. What a load.
My sister in law told me about a job opening in her school for a (1) elementary education teacher in Dixon, IL (in the middle of the corn fields of Illinois) that had received over 700 applications for that one position! OMG! Reports like this indicate that the unemployment situation is terrible. I have been out of work for about six months now, seeking jobs every single day - no job offers yet. I sure hope things get better soon because I have never experienced such a tight, competitive environment. A degree (or two) is no guarantee of a job anymore in this country, I'm sad to admit.
This president will do an about face on immigration and recind his order not to deport illegals before February. He will increase employer prosecutions and inform employers that they have to employ Americans versus illegal aliens, which is not his policy now. February or March at the latest he will try to act as if it is business as usual, and he will try to act as if it is a small flip, but the direction right now is to empower illegal aliens, so any change coming from ICE will help unemployed Americans of all races. Where in the Constitution does it say that the enforcer in chief can pick which laws he enforces? As bad as Bush was for working people Obama is about as bad. He constantly wants us to have patients. He is going to see patients in November 2012. We waited and you're gone.
First of all the unemployment rate is not 9.8%. When taking in all factors it is over 15%. The gov't. feeds us the figures it wants. It gives us wrong figures on inflation, GDP, import $, export $, etc.. I can't think of one area where the gov't. is honest with the people. We are living in a dream world if we think any differently.
give me a job, i want to pay my taxes
I have been unemployed for 6 months....after working the past 6 years at a small business where the 1/3 owner was retired, after working 25 years in banking. We had 5 to 6 fulltime employees until the downturn started. Then down to just myself and the owner. A year ago he cut my hours. Then 6 months ago....he laid me off, while he got his old job back at the bank. The remaining 2/3 owners now have a poorly paid hourly employee from one of their other businesses running the place....alone.
I did not make a huge salary...roughly $20,000 a year...but did have good benefits. Luckily, I have a significant other that remains employed. He takes up the slack....houses me, feeds me, ect; and never complains.
I have worked most of my life, with a couple of periods that I was jobless.....during which I DID NOT ask for Unemployment.
Now at almost 56 years of age...it is much different. I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia at Mayo Clinic 10 years ago. Working any type of physical job like I have done in the past, is out of the question. I don't even consider disability an option. I like to work. I want and need a job. I am not a lazy person. But as many others have found....I apply for alot of jobs with no reply/response whatsoever. Of course my age is a hindrance, regardless of experience.
I have now applied for Extended Unemployment Benefits....so I can continue to make my car payment, and pay my monthly Cobra premium. Just received my eligibility letter....and another letter the same day stating point blank that my job prospect is "not good". Their words....not mine. I kid you not. I wonder if they stop to consider how That makes the recipient of the letter feel.
Just this week I read an article saying some of us, at my age and older....may never find a decent job again. Another headline....."55, retired, and don't even know it".