Despite Hurricane Sandy, No Change to Number of Job Openings

There were 3.7 million job openings on the last business day of October, little changed from September, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The hires rate (3.2 percent) and separations rate (3.1 percent) were also little changed in October. This release includes estimates of the number and rate of job openings, hires, and separations for the nonfarm sector by industry and by geographic region.

Job Openings

The number of job openings in October was 3.7 million, essentially unchanged from September. The number of openings was little changed in all industries except construction, manufacturing, and accommodation and food services, which increased. The number of openings was also little changed in all four regions in October. The level of total nonfarm job openings in October was up from 2.4 million at the end of the recession in June 2009. (Recession dates are determined by the National Bureau of Economic Research.)

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Despite Hurricane Sandy, Jobs Up 146,000 and Unemployment Down From 7.9 to 7.7%

Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 146,000 in November, and the unemployment rate edged down to 7.7 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment increased in retail trade, professional and business services, and health care.

Hurricane Sandy made landfall on the Northeast coast on October 29th, causing severe damage in New Jersey, New York, and other states. Nevertheless, the BLS survey response rates in the affected states were within normal ranges. Its analysis suggests that Hurricane Sandy did not substantively impact the national employment and unemployment estimates for November.
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Economy Gained 814,000 Jobs in 1st Quarter 2012

From December 2011 to March 2012 gross job gains from opening and expanding private sector establishments were 6.9 million, an increase of 26,000 from the previous quarter, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over this period, gross job losses from closing and contracting private sector establishments were 6.1 million, a decrease of 399,000 from the previous quarter.

The difference between the number of gross job gains and the number of gross job losses yielded a net employment change of 814,000 jobs in the private sector during the first quarter of 2012. Continue Reading

Employment Report Blows Away Estimates; Aug & Sep Revised Upward Too

The consensus of economic forecasts for today’s payroll report was that in October the U.S. would have added about 125,000 jobs and that the unemployment would slightly increase from 7.8 to 7.9 percent due to an increase in the number of people in the labor force. The unemployment rate announced today by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics was the same as forecast, but the total number of jobs created was almost 37 percent higher as 171,000 net, new jobs were created in October. Further bolstering the strength of the report was that BLS also announced that some 84,000 more net, new jobs were created in August and September than previously estimated.

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 171,000 in October, and the unemployment rate was essentially unchanged at 7.9 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment rose in professional and business services, health care, and retail trade.

Hurricane Sandy

Hurricane Sandy had no discernible effect on the employment and unemployment data for October. Household survey data collection was completed before the storm, and establishment survey data collection rates were within normal ranges nationally and for the affected areas.

Household Survey Data

Both the unemployment rate (7.9 percent) and the number of unemployed persons (12.3 million) were essentially unchanged in October, following declines in September. Continue Reading

Unemployment Rate for Technology Jobs Below National Average

If you are searching for a job in technology, then you’re likely to find one.  While the unemployment rate is 7.8% nationally, the technology sector is doing even better with an unemployment rate around 6%.  At the same time, 54% of CIOs said it’s challenging to find skilled professionals today, according to Robert Half Technology’s Q4 IT Hiring Index. Continue Reading

Despite GOP and Fox News Claims to Contrary, 7.8% Unemployment is Real

First it was Fox News. Then it was former CEO of General Electric Jack Welch. Then it was former and current windbag Donald Trump. I was disappointed but hardly surprised when those conspiracy theorists and die hard Republican supporters accused the Obama Administration and Bureau of Labor Statistics of falsifying last Friday’s employment reports. Sometimes the truth hurts, even when the truth is that almost 900,000 more Americans are working now than a month ago and that fact should be celebrated. But I was surprised to see someone that I have a lot of respect for — former Chief Operating Officer of the Society for Human Resource Management China Gorman — join the naysayers. Say it ain’t so, China. Say it ain’t so.

Without producing a shred of any evidence — even questionable evidence — to the contrary, conspiracy theorists and GOP supporters across the conservative media outlets have slandered the ethics of the non-political appointee economists who compile and publish the monthly jobs reports for the Bureau of Labor Statistics. These conspiracy theorists were apparently disappointed to learn that almost 900,000 more Americans are working today than a month ago and that more Americans are now working than were when President Obama took office. That disappointment — thinly veiled by many of them — is sickening. That almost 900,000 more Americans are working than a month ago and more Americans are working than when Obama took office undercuts their argument that only Governor Mitt Romney and Congressman Paul Ryan can right the economy and the job market and that they will do so through the austerity measures which have devastated our state and local governments as well as the governments in Europe. Continue Reading

Unemployment Rate Falls to 7.8% as 114,000 New Jobs Added in September

Great economic news out of Washington this morning. The employment numbers for July and August were revised to reflect the fact that some 80,000 additional jobs were created during those months than initially estimated and the economy added another 114,000 jobs in September. This 194,000 surge combined with no increase in the number who have stopped looking for work resulted in the unemployment rate plummeting from 8.1 to 7.8 percent.

The unemployment rate decreased to 7.8 percent in September, and total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 114,000, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment increased in health care and in transportation and warehousing but changed little in most other major industries.

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96,000 Jobs Added in August; Unemployment Falls to 8.1%

Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 96,000 in August, and the unemployment rate edged down to 8.1 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment increased in food services and drinking places, in professional and technical services, and in health care.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the 96,000 net new jobs in August was fewer than the 125,000 gain forecast by economists. The unemployment rate, obtained by a separate survey of U.S. households, fell to 8.1 percent from 8.3 percent as the number of people looking for jobs shrank. Private sector employment by corporations accounted for all of the growth in payrolls as they added 103,000 jobs. Payroll numbers for the prior two months were revised lower: July payrolls rose 141,000 compared with the initially reported 163,000, while June’s gain was 45,000 instead of 64,000 new jobs.

Household Survey Data

The unemployment rate edged down in August to 8.1 percent. Since the beginning of this year, the rate has held in a narrow range of 8.1 to 8.3 percent. The number of unemployed persons, at 12.5 million, was little changed in August.
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22.3 Million Americans About to Waste Work Time on Fantasy Football Preparations

Number of Unemployed Young People Since 2002 Increases by 64%

According to one source, there has been an increase of young people not working since 2002, in 2012.

Nick Gidwani, founder and entrepreneur of SkilledUp.com (a search engine that provides easy access and discovery of more than 40,000 online, career-advancement and skill development courses), says there are a growing number of young people who have been priced out of higher education and are looking for alternative ways to increase their marketability. Many of those who have acquired a degree have found that its value no longer guarantees a well-paying career in their field of study. Millennials typically have excellent basic computer proficiency, but they lack specific and marketable skills that businesses can use, such as using graphic design or data analysis software. With thousands of low-cost or free courses, these young people can get “skilled up” so that they can take control of their career paths and compete in the marketplace – both with their peers, and with an increasingly global digital workforce in India, South America and Eastern Europe. Continue Reading