Today we learned that in June, our economy lost roughly 62,000 jobs according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Along with this, we learned that even more jobs were lost in May than initially thought. The unemployment rate is remaining stable at 5.5% — this has to do with the very narrow BLS definition of “unemployed” (you had a full time job, you lost it, you aren’t working at all, and you are actively looking for work). Keep in mind, May and June are a time when our new high school and college grads are looking for their first “real” job.
CNN furthermore points out that June was the 6th straight month of job losses, initial jobless claims are up, total unemployment claims are at the highest level since Katrina, and wages aren’t keeping pace with inflation — that’s inflation as [under]measured by the government.
Robert Reich did a very nice wrap-up of the problem, pointing out “Total job losses since the first of the year are now 438,000. That’s a loss of 73,000 a month. The economy needs to CREATE 125,000 jobs a month just to keep up with population growth.” That’s about all that needs to be said.
Cross-posted at ShortWoman.