The July jobs report is out and the news is not good. The economy lost 131,000 jobs in July. The employment rate remains at 9.5%. Part of the decline was due to census workers completed their work. However, the private-sector only added a measly 71,000 jobs in July.
Total nonfarm payroll employment declined by 131,000 in July, and the unem-
ployment rate was unchanged at 9.5 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statis-
tics reported today. Federal government employment fell, as 143,000 temporary
workers hired for the decennial census completed their work. Private-sector
payroll employment edged up by 71,000.
There is worse news still and that is that the number of workers hired by private firms in July was revised down from 83,000 to just 31,000 jobs. This was a discouraging jobs report. The only hope remaining for the year is that retailers will hire a lot of workers for the holidays.
The June jobs report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows the country lost 125,000 jobs. The Labor Department says the losses were because 225,000 temporary census workers were no longer needed. These census workers helped the May jobs report look better than it really was.
The private sector created 83,000 jobs in June, which is more than the double the 33,000 added in May. The unemployment fell from 9.7 to 9.5%.
It is good to see the private sector jobs headed in the right direction, but the numbers are still not healthy. The economy should really be adding about 300,000 jobs each month.
You can read more about the June jobs report here, here and here.
The numbers look good in the May jobs report, but looks can be deceiving. 431,000 new jobs were created but the vast majority of them were created by the government hiring temporary census workers. The unemployment rate dipped to 9.7 percent.
President Obama said, "We're moving in the right direction. The economic policies that we put in place are working."
Economists disagree. It was the fifth straight month of jobs gains, but the private sector is still struggling. The weak jobs report raises the possibility of a double dip recession. Take a look:
Employers added 290,000 jobs in April according to Bureau of Labor Statistics. This was the biggest increase in four years. The jobless rate rose to 9.9% because more people are looking for work again.
The BLS says the unemployment rate for whites (9.0 percent)
edged up in April, while the rates for adult men (10.1 percent), adult women
(8.2 percent), teenagers (25.4 percent), blacks (16.5 percent), and Hispanics
(12.5 percent) showed little or no change.
The BLS says the biggest gains in April came in manufacturing, professional and business services, health care, and leisure and hospitality. The April jump is also partially thanks to 66,000 temporary workers hired for the decennial census.
Michael Carey, chief economist for North America at Credit Agricole CIB, thinks the economy could add 2 million jobs in 2010. Take a look:
The numbers from the March jobs report are better. The U.S. economy gain 162,000 jobs in March, the biggest jump in three years. CNN reports that this was less than what analysts were expecting, but at least it was a jobs report in the right direction.
Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had forecast a gain of 184,000 jobs. But despite missing forecasts, the March number was generally not seen as a disappointment by economists, because revisions in January and February readings added a combined 62,000 additional jobs.
The unemployment rate remained stubbornly high, holding steady at 9.7%, matching economist expectations.
The jobs created in March are still not good enough. The economy needs really needs to create at least 300,000 jobs per month. It also needs to do this consistently. Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele said a statement taht "a large portion of the job growth came from temporary boost in government employment."
Labor Secretary Hilda Solis says it is modest and stable growth but they know more needs to be done. Take a look:
February Jobs Report Beats Expectations But Losses Continue
36,000 jobs were lost in February according to the latest report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The unemployment rate held steady at 9.7 percent. The hard hit construction sector has lost 1.9 million jobs since December, 2007. The Christian Science Monitorreports that future indicators are seeing an immediate turnaround for construction.
11,000 jobs were lost in November. The unemployment rate also improved to 10%.
It was the 23rd consecutive month the economy has last jobs. However, CNN reports that the losses were much lower than analysts had been expecting.
U.S. payrolls slipped 11,000 jobs in the month, far below any of the job losses posted over the last 23 months. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had forecast a loss of 125,000 jobs in November.
The October and September job loss estimates were also revised sharply lower, trimming previous job loss estimates by 159,000 between them.
The new reading put October job losses at 111,000 jobs, and September's loss estimate was cut to 139,000. Each of those new estimates would have been the smallest declines in more than a year.
CNN says the total number of hours worked by American workers actually increased by 0.6%. This is small but a positive sign. Unfortunately, some of this could be seasonal holiday retail hiring. It doesn't mean the economy is out of the woods and the layoffs have ceased.
Amidst all the talk of a recovery the country continues to lose jobs and the unemployment rate keeps rising. Unemployment climbed to 10.2% in October according to the Department of Labor's jobs report. Marketwatch says this is despite the fact that the economy grew 3.2% in the third quarter.
The October jobs report shows a growing disconnect between a recovery in economic output and continued job losses. The economy grew at a 3.2% annual rate in the third quarter, with productivity rising at a 9.5% rate.
"The grinding pace of progress in labor markets likely flags a tepid economic recovery," wrote Sal Guatieri, an economist for BMO Capital Markets.
The report was worse than expected. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch were forecasting a rise in the unemployment rate to 10%, with 150,000 lost payroll jobs. An upward revision to August and September payrolls cushioned some of the disappointment, however.
The 3.2% growth is likely from the Cash for Clunkers program and the infusion of cash by the government. The economy is likely to contract again if a way to create jobs is not found soon. 190,000 jobs were lost in October. It was the 22nd straight month the U.S. economy lost jobs.
The Labor Department reported Thursday that U.S. employers cut 467,000 jobs in June. The unemployment rate climbed to 9.5 percent, which is nearly a 26-year high. Reuters reports that the jobs cuts were 100,000 more than Wall Street economists had been expecting. The economy has now lost 6.5 million jobs since the recession began on Decemeber 2007.
The AP says jobs cuts were widespread covering most sectors. Only education and health services added jobs.
Professional and business services slashed 118,000 jobs, more than double the 48,000 cut in May. Manufacturers cut 136,000, down from 156,000. Construction companies got rid of 79,000 jobs, up from 48,000 the previous month. Retailers eliminated 21,000, up from 17,600. Financial activities cut 27,000, following 30,000 in May. The government cut 52,000 jobs, up from 10,000 the previous month. Leisure and hospitality cut 18,000 jobs, erasing a gain of the same size in May.
One of the few industries adding jobs: education and health services, which added 34,000 positions last month and 47,000 in May.
The big June figures are a clear sign that the pace of layoffs is not slowing down. U.S. News provides a good Q&A on what this latest jobs report means here.
Many economists welcomed the May jobs report as a positive sign even though the economy lost anouther 345,000 jobs and unemployment climbed to 9.4%. The optimism is only there because there were genuine fears the economy was in a terrifying free-fall.
Economists described the Labor Department's monthly jobs report, released Friday, as an unambiguous sign of improvement, yet also clear evidence of broadening national distress, as millions of households grapple with joblessness and lost working hours.
The fact that a report showing the highest unemployment rate in more than a quarter-century was embraced optimistically testified to the stark fears over the economy in recent months.
"The free fall that the job market was in does finally appear to be tapering off," said Stuart G. Hoffman, chief economist at PNC Financial Services Group in Pittsburgh. "It's the prelude to an economic and job recovery later this year."
VOA Newsreports that the unemployment rate is currently higher than the White House and analysts had expected and forecasted months ago.
The White House says America's employment picture is worse than the Obama administration had anticipated just a few months ago. The somber admission follows the latest jobless report showing the highest unemployment rate the United States has seen in more than 25 years.
U.S. unemployment jumped a half percent in May, to 9.4 percent prompting this comment by Austan Goolsbee, a member of President Barack Obama's Council of Economic Advisors:
"The economy clearly has gotten substantially worse from the initial predictions that were being made, not just by the White House, but by all of the private sector," said Austan Goolsbee.
The high unemployment rate is likely why President Obama announced a new plan (PDF file) to create jobs today. The Christian Science Monitornotes that the plan has little room for error.
Yet the administration is still in rescue mode. On Monday, it formally announced its plan to step up its recovery efforts and create 600,000 jobs, including 125,000 summer jobs for youth.
This may be a good thing. A recession that's moderating is still a recession. People are still losing their jobs at a faster rate than they’re finding new ones. Supporters of continued stimulus are those who see no recovery this year – or such a weak one that it will still feel like recession.
But the economy moves so fast – and government stimulus moves so slowly – that the administration risks falling behind the curve.
Several experts quoted here in a U.S. News article say they expect job losses to continue to moderate but the unemployment rate is still expected to come closer to or exceed 10%.
Job losses may moderate but it could be difficult to estimate the fallout from the GM and Chrysler bankruptcies. Retail sales in May were also weak and another weak month or two could result in more layoffs in the retail industry. There are many unknowns we have to yet to face in this recession.
Marketwatch reports a survey of economists finds that payrolls are expected to show the economy lost another half a million jobs in May. The economists surveyed expect the unemployment rate is to climb to 9.2%
The Labor Department will release the May employment report on Friday at 8:30 a.m. It's the biggest economic release in a week chock full of data covering every sector of the economy.
In "normal circumstances," such heavy job losses "would be seen as very bad news," wrote Brian Bethune and Nigel Gault, economists at IHS Global Insight. But these times are anything but normal.
Investors "may be encouraged that the pace of job losses appears to be slowing -- albeit marginally," wrote Meny Grauman, an economist for CIBC World Markets. It would be the smallest monthly job loss since 380,000 were lost in October in the wake of the financial panic that followed the collapse of Lehman Bros.
500,000 lost jobs will be the lowest monthly number since last October. It may seem like good news to some that a smaller number of jobs are being lost but 500,000 lost jobs is not really a positive sign. It's a sign of a very unhealthy economy. The May jobs report will be out next Friday.
ADP Reports Private Employers Cut 742,000 Jobs in March
Reuters reports that a report released by ADP Employer Services says 742,000 jobs were cut by private employers in March. The February number was also revised to 706,000 job cuts - up slight from 697,000.
Private employers cut jobs by a record 742,000 in March versus a 706,000 revised cut in February that was originally reported at 697,000 jobs, said ADP, which has been carrying out the survey since 2001.
The big drop foreshadows a huge decline in the non-farm payroll reading in the government's employment report that will be released on Friday, some analysts said.
"It's a terrible number. It is almost a loss of three quarters of a million jobs which is possibly the highest we have seen so far over the length of this crisis," said Matt Esteve, foreign exchange trader with Tempus Consulting in Washington
This is a very large number job cuts. We will find out Friday if the government's number are similar.
The unemployment rose to 8.1% in February after another 651,000 jobs were lost in February according to the Labor Department. The Wall Street Journalquotes Joseph LaVorgna, chief U.S. economist at Deutsche Bank, who says we will reach 10% unemployment by the end of 2009.
The number of jobless Americans rose to 12.5 million in February, pushing the unemployment rate to 8.1%, up from 7.6% in January, said the Labor Department.
"We'll be at 10% unemployment by year end," said Joseph LaVorgna, chief U.S. economist at Deutsche Bank. "What's going to stop it?"
The U.S. has lost 4.4 million jobs since the recession began in December 2007 -- more than half the losses coming in the last four months as the worst financial crisis in decades has intensified the economy's steep decline.
The jobs data is really grim. Bloomberg gives you an idea of just how bad it is when they note that job losses have now exceeded 600,000 for three straight months - the "first time this has happened since the data began in 1939."
Nonfarm payrolls fell 598,000 in January according to a new report from the U.S. Department of Labor. December was also revised to a loss of 577,000.
Nonfarm payrolls fell by a seasonally adjusted 598,000 in January after a revised loss of 577,000 in December, the government said. It's the largest payroll loss since December 1974, according to a survey of workplaces. Payrolls fell by 597,000 in November.
"Job losses were large and widespread across the major industry sectors," said Keith Hall, head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Manufacturing saw its largest decline in 26 years.
Unemployment climbed to 7.6%. It was the deepest cut in payrolls in 34 years. It was also higher than the 525,000 losses economists were expecting. Nearly 3.6 million jobs have now been lost since the recession began.
Another 500,000+ Jobs Lost in December. Unemployment Climbs to 7.2%
The number of jobs lost in November was similar to November. Nonfarm payroll employment declined sharply in December, and the unemployment rate rose from 6.8 to 7.2 percent - this is a 16-year record. Payroll employment fell by 524,000 over the month and by 1.9 million over the last 4 months of 2008. In December, job losses were large and widespread across most major industry sectors.
The New York Timessays the total number of jobs lost in the recession is now 2.59 million. That number is likely to grow as companies are not done making cuts.
The December decline in jobs came on top of similar losses in October and November. Not since 1980 has the work force shrunk so much in just three months. Companies across all industries are grappling with sales that are deteriorating rapidly just as they lose easy access to loans.
"The simplest way for a company to hoard cash is to drain their inventories and fire their workers," said Robert J. Barbera, chief economist at the Investment Technology Group, a research and trading firm, "and everywhere you look, that is what is happening."
The total number of jobs lost in the recession now totals 2.59 million, counting upward revisions for October and November, with many more job losses expected in coming months.
In some cases companies are filing for bankruptcy or liquidating and jobs are lost because the company is gone. You can see the complete report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics here.
The November jobs report is out and it is even uglier than analysts were expecting. 533,000 jobs were lost in November and unemployment climbed from 6.5% to 6.7%. As the Wall Street Journal says the report is blecch. Total wise it was the biggest job in three decades but percentage wise there were bigger one month falls in 1980 says Time.
What it still isn't is a historic drop: It's yet another sign that this recession is a much bigger deal than the last two, in 2001 and 1990-91. But in percentage terms (it was a 0.39% drop) there were bigger one month falls in employment in 1980 and, repeatedly, in 1974 and 1975. There were also sharper drops in almost every year of the 1950s, but those were mostly the result of temporary layoffs that were reversed a few months later.
The October and numbers were also revised upward 320,000 from 240,000. The jobs report statement from the Bureau of Labor Statistics can be found here.
240,000 Jobs Lost in October; Jobless Rate Hits 6.5%
The latest jobs report from the U.S. Department of Labor has the jobless rate at 6.5%. 240,000 jobs were lost in October and the September job cuts were revised to 284,000 jobs. A total of 1.2 million jobs have been lost this year reports the Associated Press.
The jobless rate zoomed to 6.5 percent in October from 6.1 percent in September, matching the rate in March 1994.
Unemployment has now surpassed the high seen after the last recession in 2001. The jobless rate peaked at 6.3 percent in June 2003.
October's decline marked the 10th straight month of payroll reductions, and government revisions showed that job losses in August and September turned out to be much deeper. Employers cut 127,000 positions in August, compared with 73,000 previously reported. A whopping 284,000 jobs were axed in September, compared with the 159,000 jobs first reported.
So far this year, a staggering 1.2 million jobs have disappeared. Over half of the decrease occurred in the past three months alone.
It may be a while before we see a month with an increase in jobs as big companies like Merck, Yahoo, PepsiCo, Mattel, GM and Whirlpool have all already announced plans to layoff workers in 2009. The complete jobs report can be found here.
159,000 jobs were cut in September according to the latest jobs reports from the Labor Department. This was the biggest monthly jobs loss in five years. Unemployment remained at 6.1%. The AP notes that the economy has now lost 760,000 jobs this year.
The reduction in payrolls was much sharper than the 100,000 cuts economists were forecasting. They expected the jobless rate to be unchanged.
It marked the ninth straight month that the economy has lost jobs. The drop underscores fallout from a long slump in the housing market and a dangerous credit crunch that intensified last month throwing Wall Street -- and the economy -- into chaos.
So far this year, 760,000 jobs have disappeared.
"The economy is now sliding down the slippery slope of recession," said economist Ken Mayland, president of ClearView Economics.
Wall Street appeared relieved the decline in payrolls wasn't deeper. Stock futures were strengthening, pointing to a higher opening. The Dow fell 348 points Thursday amid worries about the broader economy.
The job cuts were widespread in several industries. Manufacturing jobs led with construction companies and retailers also cutting tens of thousands of jobs.
Manufacturers cut 51,000 jobs, construction companies axed 35,000 jobs, retailers got rid of 40,000 positions, business services shed 27,000 and financial services slashed 17,000 positions, with securities and investment firms accounting for 8,000 of those reductions. Leisure and hospitality companies also reduced employment by 17,000. That overwhelmed employment gains by the government, in education, health and elsewhere.
With the problems on Wall Street and deepening economic concerns it doesn't appear likely that the remaining three months of the year are going to be much different than the September report. You can see the jobs report here.
The August jobs report is in from the U.S. Department of Labor. The unemployment rate climbed to 6.1%. In August the economy lost 84,000 jobs in August. That makes a total of 605,000 jobs lost this year.
As CNN reports each of these final job reports as we get closer to the November elections is very significant and the presidential candidates are jumping on each report.
The jobs report immediately drew comment from the presidential candidates as well as the Bush administration.
The White House pointed to other economic readings, including last week's gross domestic product report. It showed second quarter growth jumping to a 3.3% annual rate, helped by economic stimulus checks and strong exports.
"While these (jobs) numbers are disappointing, what is most important is the overall direction the economy is headed," said the White House statement.
But the campaign of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama said the report points out the failure of Republican policies.
"John McCain showed last night that he is intent on continuing the economic policies that just this year have caused the American economy to lose 605,000 jobs," Obama said in a statement. "John McCain's answer is more of the same: $200 billion in tax cuts to big corporations and oil companies, and not one dime of tax relief to more than 100 million middle-class families."
One thing that could help create jobs is holiday hiring by retailers. However, retailers have a bleak outlook for sales this holiday season so they may not hire as many positions are they would during a more upbeat holiday shopping season.
A Reuters story says a new report from consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas indicates planned layoffs by employers have climbed 26% over June's figures. Planned layoffs at U.S. companies for July exceed 100,000 jobs.
Planned layoffs at U.S. companies jumped 26 percent in July from June, depicting further deterioration in the labor market, a report showed on Monday.
Planned layoffs at U.S. companies totaled 103,312 in July, compared with June's 81,755, employment consulting firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc said.
Announced job cuts at U.S. companies last month were the second highest total so far in 2008, more than double the 42,897 a year earlier, the report said.
eWeek takes a close look that the report to see what it means for IT workers. A couple other articles on the planned layoffs report can be found on TheStreet.com and Forbes.
The economy shed over 50,000 jobs in June so increasing signs of more layoffs to come is not a good thing.
The latest jobs report indicates that employers are continuing to layoff workers. Another 51,000 jobs were shed by the economy in July reports the Huffington Post. That makes a total of 463,000 jobs lost this year. The unemployment rate also ticked up to 5.7% - up from 5.5% in June.
Employers clamped down on hiring and cut 51,000 jobs in July, the Labor Department said Friday. The economy has shed jobs each month this year _ 463,000 in all.
The unemployment rate rose to 5.7 percent, up from 5.5 percent in June.
The jobs report contributed to another day of grim news for the economy. General Motors reported a staggering quarterly loss of more than $15 billion and said its sales fell by more than a quarter from last year.
The Commerce Department said spending on construction projects around the country dropped 0.4 percent in June as cutbacks in home building eclipsed gains in commercial construction.
An article from U.S. News has comments from several experts on what the jobs drought means for you. Here's an AP video about the jobs report which says it is the teen demographic that is being hit the hardest.
Signs the economy is getting worse for workers increase this week as jobless claims climbed to over 400,000. This was the highest level in nearly four months according to the International Herald Tribune
The number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment benefits rose last week to the highest level in almost four months, a sign the slowing economy is weakening the labor market.
Initial jobless claims increased by 34,000 to 406,000 in the week ended July 19, from a revised 372,000 the prior week, the Labor Department said Thursday in Washington. The filings exceeded economists' forecast and were the most since 406,000 in the week ended March 29.
U.S. employers are reducing workers as surging fuel costs, a three-year housing slump and a crisis in credit markets restrains demand. Rising joblessness reinforces concern that consumers will pull back on spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of the economy.
"The job market is weakening, and the numbers this morning confirm that," Brian Bethune, an economist at Global Insight Inc. in Lexington, Massachusetts, said in a Bloomberg Television interview. "The economy is growing but at very slow rates."
This news comes on top of what has already been a grim year for job growth. In 2007 the economy created an average of 91,000 jobs each month. This year the economy has lost jobs each month.
Over a six-month period, payrolls have declined for a total loss of 438,000 workers and the payroll in April and May was revised to 52,000 more jobs.
The U.S. economy has lost jobs every month since the beginning of this year and it shed 62,000 jobs in June and up to 49,000 jobs in May. Last year, the economy created on average 91,000 new jobs each month.
If the new jobless claim figures are any indication July will probably be another month that loses jobs. Maybe by the end of the year there will some new job creation as retailers hire workers for the holiday shopping season.
TheStreet.com reports that 79,000 jobs were lost in June according to a report from Automatic Data Processing (ADP).
Declines were much broader than previous months, as continued weakness in the housing and financial sectors bled into other areas. Even the services sector -- which had not posted a decline since November 2002 -- slashed 3,000 jobs over the course of the month.
The overall drop was nearly four times as high as the median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. ADP also downwardly revised its May figure to an addition of 25,000 private, nonfarm jobs, rather than the initially reported 40,000. Figures are adjusted for seasonal shifts.
Sectors related to the housing market -- including residential construction, home sales and mortgages -- were especially hard hit again, as the housing sector struggles to find solid ground. Construction companies dropped 34,000 employees, the 19th consecutive monthly decline. Since the height of the housing market in August 2006, the sector has lost 349,000 jobs.
Joel Prakken, chairman of Macroeconomic Advisers, which develops the report with ADP, noted that small businesses posted weak growth, despite having been the "the savior" of the drab employment picture for the last year and a half. That sector added 7,000 jobs in June, compared with 50,000 in May.
The reports shows the economy is weak and the weakness is spreading. The estimated change in employment from April to May was also revised down from an increase of 40,000 to an increase of 25,000. Jobs are likely to continue if the recent Starbucks layoff announcement is a sign of things to come. You can find a PDF version of the ADP report here.
The economy lost jobs in March for the third month in a row. 80,000 jobs were lost and the job losses were spread over a number of industries according to the Associated Press.
The new snapshot of the job market, released by the Labor Department Friday, underscored the damage that a trio of crises --in the housing, credit and financial sectors -- has inflicted on companies, jobseekers and the economy as a whole.
"The labor market has indeed turned south," said Joel Naroff, president of Naroff Economic Advisors. "That was the one last bastion of hope to stay out of a recession. Now the question is how deep and how long will it last?"
The unemployment rate was the highest since September 2005, when significant job losses followed the devastating blows of Gulf Coast hurricanes.
Job losses were widespread in March. Construction, manufacturing, retailing, financial services and various business services all racked up losses. That overwhelmed gains elsewhere, including in education and health care, leisure and hospitality as well as in government.
The national unemployment rate climbed from 4.8% to 5.1% in March.
The complete March jobs report can be found here. The report indicates that construction and manufacturing have been hard hit.
Employment in construction declined by 51,000 in March and has fallen by 394,000 since its peak in September 2006.
Manufacturing employment fell by 48,000 in March and by 310,000 over the past 12 months.
February's job report is in and it isn't pretty. The economy lost 63,000 jobs last month. The jobs report for January was revised downward to a minus 22,000 jobs so the economy has lost over 80,000 jobs already this year. The IHTquotes economist Jared Bernstein as saying he hasn't "seen a job report this recessionary since the last recession."
The economy shed 63,000 jobs in February, the government said Friday, the fastest falloff in five years and the strongest evidence yet that the nation is headed toward - or may already be in - a recession.
Manufacturers and construction companies, reeling from the worst housing slump in decades, led the declines in payrolls. But the losses were spread across a broad range of businesses - including department stores, offices and retail outlets - putting increased pressure on consumers' pocketbooks.
The unexpected decline raised anticipation on Wall Street that the Federal Reserve would lower interest rates again this month, perhaps by as much as a full percentage point, as the central bank scrambles to stave off a steep economic slowdown.
"I haven't seen a job report this recessionary since the last recession," said Jared Bernstein, an economist at the Economic Policy Institute in Washington. "This is a picture of a labor market becoming clearly infected by the contagion from the rest of the economy."
Unless there is a big positive number in March then the first quarter is going be negative for job growth. You can see the February, 2008 jobs report from the BLS here.
For the first time in four years the economy has lost jobs. Last month the economy lost 17,000 jobs.
The economy lost 17,000 jobs in January, the Labor Department reported on Friday, the first decline in four years and the most striking evidence yet that the United States may be slipping into a recession.
Jobs disappeared across a broad spectrum of professions, with the steepest losses coming in the manufacturing, construction and goods-producing industries.
The unemployment rate, after jumping to 5 percent in December, fell back slightly, to 4.9 percent.
"This is the clearest signal yet that the job market is either in or teetering on a recession," said Jared Bernstein, senior economist at the liberal Economic Policy Institute in Washington.
We are on the brink of recession with these January figures. December was better with a gain of gain of 82,000 jobs (revised upward from the the first December estimate of 18,000 jobs). The economy needs about 150,000 new jobs monthly just to keep pace with population growth so even December's numbers were not strong enough. Hopefully, the economy can turn around enough to avert a recession. We don't want to see continuous months of negative job growth in 2008.
Marketwatch is reporting that jobless claims (first-time jobless claims) have soared 69,000 in the past week - the biggest jump since Hurricane Katrina in September, 2005.
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits rose 69,000 in the week ended Jan. 26, reaching 375,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. It marked the highest level since early October -- and the biggest weekly jump since September 2005 in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
Before this sharp rise, jobless claims had fallen by a net of 51,000 since late December, confounding economists who had expected claims to gradually rise as the nation's economy slowed.
Analysts had been expecting an increase, but nothing nearly as large as last week's gain: The consensus forecast as compiled by MarketWatch had called for claims to rise to about 320,000.
You can follow the data from the government on this page on the U.S. Department of Labor's website.
The weakening economy isn't a secret to workers seeking jobs but it has surprised Wall Street. Employers added just 18,000 jobs to payrolls in December and the unemployment rate climbed to 5%.
Stocks tumbled Friday, dragging the Dow Jones industrial average below the 13,000 level, after the government's much-anticipated employment report showed weaker-than-expected job growth and a rise in the unemployment rate.
The Labor Department's report employers raised payrolls by only 18,000 and that the nation's unemployment rate rose to its highest level since November 2005 unnerved investors worried that a weakening job market will hurt consumer spending.
"It's a scary number, no question about it. No matter how good you wanted to feel about the economy averting a recession there is far less conviction than even two or three days ago," said Joe Balestrino, senior portfolio manager at Federated Investors.
The December jobs report was the lowest number of jobs added since August 2003.
The December report showed employers added the fewest jobs to their payrolls since August 2003. Economists had predicted a jobs growth figure of about 70,000 and an unemployment rate of 4.8 percent. Instead, unemployment climbed to 5 percent in December from 4.7 percent in November. While 5 percent unemployment is still considered good by historical standards, the increase from November clearly made some investors nervous.
There won't be the holiday season retail hirings in January that we had in November and December so the next jobs report probably won't be pretty either.
The new August jobs report indicates that there was a reduction in non-farm payrolls of 4,000 jobs. The number of jobs created in June and July have also been reduced. Marketwatch reports that the job growth over the past three months has been a dismal 44,000. The economy needs to create at least 150,000 jobs per month just to absorb new workers entering the labor force.
Adding to the sense of weakness in employment, payrolls in June and July were revised lower by a cumulative 81,000.
Job growth has averaged 44,000 over the past three months.
The separate household survey showed a decline in employment of 316,000 in August, and a 24,000 drop in unemployment. But since the size of the labor force as calculated by the Labor Department fell by 340,000, the unemployment rate held steady.
Under the Clinton administration there was a monthly average of 236,000 new jobs. Under the Bush administration the number of jobs created rarely even reaches the 150,000 minimum needed and it has now returned to negative numbers.
The BBC repots that U.S. employers added a measly 92,000 new jobs in July.
In a further discouraging sign of the pace of economic growth, the national unemployment rate rose to its highest level since the start of the year.
The 4.6% unemployment rate in July was the highest since a similar 4.6% rate in January.
In addition, for the first time in 18 months the government cut hiring.
The disappointing figures will not help ease the worries over the outlook for the economy, prompted by the deepening crisis in the county's sub-prime mortgage sector that is shaking markets.
"If you already got a dip as far as employment goes and unemployment is edging up, the question is - what's next month's number going to look like when subprime and credit jitters really start to rear their ugly head," said Alan Lancz, president at Alan B. Lancz & Associates.
This is even worse than the pathetic 132,000 figure reported for June. You can find more data on the Department of Labor's website -- just scroll down to the section that says "latest numbers."
Here are some career and job news highlights from around the Web.
June jobs report: 132,000 jobs in June. 2007's average monthly new jobs of 145,000 is less than 2007's 189,000. Both numbers are wimpy compared to Clinton administration's 236,000 montly average.
Hanesbrands Inc. will cut 5,300 jobs. 11% of its workforce .
Blog launched to help laid off San Francisco Chronicle employees.
Layoffs increase in May: US employers announced 71,115 layoffs in May, up 32% from May, 2006.
157,000 jobs were added in May. The figure was the highest in two months. Last month a mere 80,000 jobs were added.
Thread here on Slashdot about high paying jobs in Math and Science.
Upcoming Gap, Inc. layoffs could number in the hundreds just in the Bay Area.
Huge Cuts: I, Cringly says 150,000 layoffs possible at IBM.
March layoffs report indicates that manufacturing jobs account for 34% of March layoffs.
Citigroup's job cutting plans include 17,000 layoffs and 9,500 jobs move overseas.
Housing industry job cuts in March almost as many as all of in 2006. March had 21,245 housing industry job cuts compared to 22,814 in 2006.
U.S. reaches visa cap for tech workers. 150,000 applications for the H-1B visa have already been received .
An age discrimination lawsuit has been filed over the recent Circuit City layoffs.
U.S. News reports that only 132,000 jobs were created in June. They seem to be taking a positive tone with that weak number. They also provide these "fun facts" about employment reports.
Five Fun Facts: 1) The unemployment rate for college graduates was 2.0 percent vs. 4.1 percent for workers who are just high school grads; 2) Voluntary job leavers jumped by 46,000 to 810,000, perhaps showing more worker confidence; 3) The labor force participation rate edged up to 66.1 percent from 66.0 percent, meaning more people joined or rejoined the working world; 4) Hourly earnings rose 0.3 percent for a year-over-year rate of 3.9 percent; 5) An average of 145,000 net new jobs have been created per month this year vs. 189,000 last year.
It is surprising there is so much excitement over weak job performance. During the Clinton administration job growth averaged 236,000. That's much higher than the continually weak monthly job performance under the Bush administration.
Analysts somehow shrugged off data that showed weak job growth in December -- a month that generally shows some increase because of seasonal retail hiring. A Yahoo News claims that economists are unfazed by the report.
US employers added 108,000 jobs in December, the government said in a report analysts said suggested a temporary cooling of economic growth.
The Labor Department's report on nonfarm payrolls was well below the 205,000 new jobs expected on average by private economists. But the agency made an upward revision to show a gain of 305,000 jobs in November from a prior estimate of 215,000.
The unemployment rate, meanwhile, fell to 4.9 percent.
Analysts said the payroll growth figure was below what is needed to absorb new labor market entrants. But they note that monthly data may be volatile and that the average of November and December figures remains healthy.
It is suprising that economists would find anything positive in December's payroll numbers -- especially with January heating bills about to hit consumers and gas prices likely to spike upwards again around April or May.
The Associated Press reports that applications for unemployment benefited soared by 71,000 last week in the first report from the Labor Department that included Katrina-related claims. The Labor Department said 68,000 of the claims were related to the monster hurricane.
The Labor Department reported Thursday that applications for unemployment benefits jumped by 71,000 last week, the biggest increase since the East Coast blizzard of 1996.
The government said 68,000 of those claims were hurricane-related and analysts predicted that number would climb higher in coming weeks as more laid-off workers get around to filing claims and state unemployment offices process a backlog of claims already filed.
In other bad economic news, the Labor Department reported consumer inflation grew by 0.5 percent in August, after a similar jump in July. Both increases were driven by surging energy prices.
Economists said the September figure is likely to be worse, noting that gasoline reached its record high of more than $3 a gallon this month and other fuel prices increased as well.
The report from the Labor Department can be found here on the U.S. Department of Labor website.
Reuters 