Subscribe to Dollars & Sense magazine. Recent articles related to the financial crisis. Blacks See Wages ShrinkAnother very troubling report from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI). In their latest weekly economic snapshot they show that African Americans are the only group of workers who have seen their wages go down during the recession. As noted in our last post (see point 3), the official unemployment rate for African Americans is more than 50 percent higher than the national average (14.7% vs. 9.5%). From EPI: African Americans see weekly wage decline Labels: Black jobless rate, Black wages, Economic Policy Institute, EPI, wage gap Please consider donating to Dollars & Sense and/or subscribing to the magazine (both print and e-subscriptions now available!). Male Worker Jobless Rate In June: 10.6 PercentA summary of today's BLS report from Bob Feldman:The official "seasonally adjusted" unemployment rate for male workers in the United States over 16 years-of-age increased from 10.5 percent to 10.6 percent between May 2009 and June 2009, according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data. The official "seasonally adjusted" unemployment rate for white male workers increased from 9 percent to 9.2 percent between May 2009 and June 2009. For all U.S. workers, the "not seasonally adjusted" jobless rate increased from 9.1 percent to 9.7 percent between May 2009 and June 2009. The official "not seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for Black female workers over 20 years-of-age also increased from 11.1 percent to 11.7 percent between May 2009 and June 2009; and the official "not seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for all Black workers increased from 14.7 percent to 15.3 percent during this same period. The official "not seasonally adjusted" rate for all Black male workers over 20 years-of age was still 16.1 percent in June 2009. The official "not seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for Black youth between 16 and 19 years-of-age increased from 40.1 percent to 45 percent between May 2009 and June 2009, while the "not seasonally adjusted" unemployment rate for Hispanic or Latino youth was still 30.1 percent during this same period. The official "not seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for white youth between 16 and 19 years-of-age also increased from 21.1 percent to 25 percent between May 2009 and June 2009. Between May 2009 and June 2009, the official "not seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for Hispanic or Latina women jumped from 10.5 percent to 11.5 percent, while the "not seasonally adjusted" unemployment rate for Asian-American workers jumped from 6.7 percent to 8.2 percent during this same period. The official "seasonally adjusted" unemployment rate for all Hispanic and Latino workers in the United States in June 2009 was 12.2 percent. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' July 2, 2009 press release: "Nonfarm payroll employment continued to decline in June (-467,000)... Job losses were widespread across the major industry sectors, with large declines occurring in manufacturing, professional and business services, and construction ... "The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) increased by 433,000 over the month to 4.4 million. In June, 3 in 10 unemployed persons were jobless for 27 weeks or more... "Employment in manufacturing fell by 136,000 over the month… Within the durable goods industry, motor vehicles and parts (-27,000), fabricated metal products (-18,000), computer and electronic products (-16,000), and machinery (-14,000) continued to lose jobs in June. "In June, employment in construction fell by 79,000, with losses spread throughout the industry…Mining employment fell by 8,000 in June... "Employment in the professional and business services industry declined by 118,000 in June... Within this sector, employment in temporary help services fell by 38,000 in June... "Retail trade employment edged down in June (-21,000)…Over the month, job losses continued in automobile dealerships (-9,000). Employment continued to fall in wholesale trade (-16,000). "In June, financial activities employment continued to decline (-27,000)…In June, employment declined in credit intermediation and related activities (-10,000) and in securities, commodity contracts, and investments (-6,000). "The information industry lost 21,000 jobs over the month… "Employment in federal government fell by 49,000 in June, largely due to the layoff of workers temporarily hired to prepare for Census 2010..." --b.f. Labels: Black jobless rate, Bob Feldman, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Latino jobless rate, real unemployment rate Please consider donating to Dollars & Sense and/or subscribing to the magazine (both print and e-subscriptions now available!). Black Male Unemployment Jumps to 17.2%Black Male Worker Jobless Rate Jumps To 17.2% in AprilThe official "seasonally adjusted" unemployment rate for Black male workers over 20 years-of-age in the United States increased from 15.4 percent to 17.2 percent between March 2009 and April 2009, according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data. The official seasonally adjusted jobless rate for Black female workers over 20 years old also increased from 9.9% to 11.5% between March 2009 and April 2009; and the official "seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for all Black workers increased from 13.3% to 15% during this same period. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for white male workers increased from 8% to 8.5% between March 2009 and April 2009 The seasonally adjusted rate for all Hispanic or Latino workers in April 2009 was 11.3%. For all U.S. workers over 20 years old, the seasonally adjusted jobless rate increased from 8.5% to 8.9 %between March 2009 and April 2009. The seasonally adjusted jobless rate for Black youth between 16 and 19 years old increased from 32.5% to 34.7% between March 2009 and April 2009, while the unemployment rate for Hispanic or Latino youth increased from 24.9% to 26.5% during this same period. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' May 8, 2009 press release: "...In April, job losses were large and widespread across nearly all major private-sector industries. Overall, private-sector employment fell by 611,000. "The number of unemployed persons increased by 563,000 to 13.7 million in April... "Among the unemployed, the number of job losers and persons who completed temporary jobs rose by 571,000 in April to 8.8 million.... "The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) increased by 498,000 to 3.7 million over the month... "About 2.1 million persons...were marginally attached to the labor force in April...These individuals wanted and were available for work...They were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey. Among the marginally attached, there were 740,000 discouraged workers in April... "Nonfarm payroll employment fell by 539,000 in April to 132.4 million; private-sector employment declined by 611,000...In April, job losses continued in most major private-sector industries... "Employment in manufacturing fell by 149,000 over the month... "Construction employment declined by 110,000 in April... "The professional and business services industry lost 122,000 jobs in April....Half of the April decline occurred in temporary help services. "Employment in retail trade fell by 47,000 in April.... Wholesale trade employment was down by 41,000 over the month... "Employment in transportation and warehousing declined by 38,000 in April...Employment in financial activities declined by 40,000 over the month...The leisure and hospitality industry lost 44,000 jobs in April..." —b.f. Labels: Black jobless rate, Bob Feldman, recession, unemployment Please consider donating to Dollars & Sense and/or subscribing to the magazine (both print and e-subscriptions now available!). Sky High Unemployment for Blacks With Degrees Another EPI economic snapshot: Fifteen months into a deep recession, college-educated white workers still had a relatively low unemployment rate of 3.8% in March of this year. The same could not be said for African Americans with four-year degrees. The March 2009 unemployment rate for college-educated blacks was 7.2%-almost twice as high as the white rate-and up 4.5 percentage points from March 2007, before the start of the current recession (see chart). Hispanics and Asian Americans with college degrees were in between, both with March 2009 unemployment rates of 5%. See original post for sources and more info. Labels: Black jobless rate, Economic Policy Institute, EPI Please consider donating to Dollars & Sense and/or subscribing to the magazine (both print and e-subscriptions now available!). Black Male Jobless Rate: 16.1% in FebruaryFrom Bob Feldman; includes key excerpts from today's BLS report.Black Male Worker Jobless Rate: 16.1 Percent In February The official "not-seasonally adjusted" unemployment rate for Black male workers over 20 years of age in the United States increased from 15.8 percent to 16.1 percent between January 2009 and February 2009, while the "seasonally adjusted" unemployment rate for Black male workers increased from 14.1 percent to 14.9 percent, according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data (http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t02.htm ) . The "not-seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for all Black workers over 20 years of age increased from 13.4 percent to 13.8 percent during this same period, while the "seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for all Black workers increased to 13.4 percent. For all U.S. workers, the "not-seasonally adjusted" jobless rate jumped from 8.5 percent to 8.9 percent between January 2009 and February 2009, while the "seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for all U.S. workers increased to 8.1 percent. The "not-seasonally adjusted" unemployment rate for white male workers also increased from 8.3 percent to 9 percent between January 2009 and February 2009. The "not-seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for Hispanic or Latino male workers increased from 11 percent to 12.1 percent between January 2009 and February 2009. Between January 2009 and February 2009, the "seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for Black youth between 16 and 19 years-of-age increased from 36.5 percent to 38.8 percent, while the "seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for white youth between 16 and 19 years-of-age was 19.1 percent. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' March 6, 2009 press release: "The number of unemployed persons increased by 851,000 to 12.5 million in February... "Among the unemployed, the number of job losers and persons who completed temporary jobs increased by 716,000 to 7.7 million in February... "The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) increased by 270,000 to 2.9 million in February... "In February, the number of persons who worked part time for economic reasons (sometimes referred to as involuntary part-time workers) rose by 787,000, reaching 8.6 million...This category includes persons who would like to work full time but were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find full-time jobs... "There were 731,000 discouraged workers in February, up by 335,000 from a year earlier. Discouraged workers are persons not currently looking for work because they believe no jobs are available for them... "Total nonfarm payroll employment dropped by 651,000 in February... "Employment in professional and business services fell by 180,000 in February. The temporary help industry lost 78,000 jobs over the month....In February, job declines also occurred in services to buildings and dwellings (-17,000), architectural and engineering services (-16,000), and business support services (-12,000). "Widespread job losses continued in manufacturing in February (-168,000). The majority of the decline occurred in durable goods industries (-132,000), with the largest decreases in fabricated metal products (-28,000) and machinery (-25,000). Employment in nondurable goods manufacturing declined by 36,000 over the month. "The construction industry lost 104,000 jobs in February... "Employment in truck transportation declined by 33,000 in February...The information industry continued to lose jobs (-15,000)... "Employment in financial activities continued to decline in February (-44,000).... In February, job losses occurred in real estate (-11,000); credit intermediation (-11,000); and securities, commodity contracts, and investments (-8,000). "Retail trade employment fell by 40,000 over the month...In February, employment decreased in automobile dealerships (-9,000), sporting goods (-9,000), furniture and homefurnishing stores (-8,000), and building material and garden supply stores (-7,000). Employment in wholesale trade fell by 37,000 over the month, with nearly all of the decline occurring in durable goods. "Employment in leisure and hospitality continued to trend down over the month (-33,000), with about half of the decrease in the accommodation industry (-18,000)..." --b.f. Labels: Black jobless rate, Bob Feldman, Bureau of Labor Statistics, jobs, recession, unemployment Please consider donating to Dollars & Sense and/or subscribing to the magazine (both print and e-subscriptions now available!). Black Male Jobless Rate: 15.8% In JanuaryAs bad as the general official unemployment numbers are, the real jobless rate for Black males appears to have no bottom. From Bob Feldman.The official "not-seasonally adjusted" unemployment rate for Black male workers in the United States jumped from 13.8 percent to 15.8 percent between December 2008 and January 2009, while the "seasonally adjusted" unemployment rate for Black male workers increased to 14.1 percent, according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data. The "not-seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for all Black workers increased from 11.7 percent to 13.4 percent during this same period, while the "seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for all Black workers increased to 12.6 percent. For all U.S. workers, the "not-seasonally adjusted" jobless rate jumped from 7.1 percent to 8.5 percent between December 2008 and January 2009, while the "seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for all U.S. workers increased to 7.6 percent. The "not-seasonally adjusted" unemployment rate for white male workers also increased from 6.8 percent to 8.3 percent between December 2008 and January 2009. Between December 2008 and January 2009, the "seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for Black youth between 16 and 19 years-of-age increased from 33.7 percent to 36.5 percent, while the "seasonally adjusted" jobless rate for white youth between 16 and 19 years-of-age was 18.4 percent. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' February 6, 2009 press release: "In January, job losses were large and widespread across nearly all major industry sectors." ... "Both the number of unemployed persons (11.6 million) and the unemployment rate (7.6 percent) rose in January." ... "The civilian labor force participation rate, at 65.5 percent in January, has edged down in recent months." ... "Total nonfarm payroll employment fell sharply (-598,000) in January...In January employment declined in nearly all major industries." ... "Manufacturing employment fell by 207,000 in January, the largest 1-month decline since October 1982. In January, durable goods manufacturing lost 157,000 jobs, with notable decreases in fabricated metal products (-37,000), motor vehicles and parts (-31,000), and machinery (-22,000). Employment in nondurable goods manufacturing declined by 50,000 over the month." ... "Construction lost 111,000 jobs in January... Employment fell across most component industries over the month." ... "The temporary help industry lost 76,000 jobs in January... Professional and technical services lost 29,000 jobs in January." ... "Retail trade employment fell by 45,000 in January... In January, employment declined in automobile dealerships (-14,000), building material and garden supply stores (-10,000), department stores (-9,000), and furniture and home furnishing stores (-7,000). Over the month, wholesale trade employment fell by 31,000." ... "Transportation and warehousing lost 44,000 jobs in January...In January, employment fell in truck transportation (-25,000), support activities for transportation (-9,000), and couriers and messengers (-4,000)." ... "Employment in financial activities declined by 42,000 over the month...In January, job losses occurred in securities, commodity contracts, and investments (-15,000) and in credit intermediation (-10,000)" --b.f. Labels: Black jobless rate, Bob Feldman, Bureau of Labor Statistics, unemployment Please consider donating to Dollars & Sense and/or subscribing to the magazine (both print and e-subscriptions now available!). Black Male Jobless Rate In Dec. 2008: 13.4%From Bob Feldman; this repeats some of what we reported a couple of days ago, but it bears repeating...The "seasonally adjusted" official unemployment rate for Black male workers in the United States over the age of 20 jumped from 12.1% to 13.4% between November and December 2008, according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data. In addition, the official jobless rate for Black youth between 16 and 19 years old in the United States increased from 32.2% to 33.7%, while the unemployment rate for white youth increased from 18.4% to 18.7%. The official jobless rate for Hispanic or Latino workers in the United States also increased from 8.6% to 9.2% between November and December 2008. The Bureau of Labor Statistics also summarized the December 2008 employment situation in the United States for all U.S. workers in the following way in its January 9, 2009 press release: Nonfarm payroll employment declined sharply in December, and the unemployment--b.f. Labels: Black jobless rate, Bob Feldman, Bureau of Labor Statistics, unemployment Please consider donating to Dollars & Sense and/or subscribing to the magazine (both print and e-subscriptions now available!). Black Jobless Rate: 11.1% In OctoberFrom Bob Feldman:Despite the election of a Democratic Party majority in the U.S. Congress in November 2006, the official unemployment rate for Black workers was still 11.1 percent in October 2008 under the current U.S. economic system, according to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics data. And if the conclusion of Harry Shutt's 1998 book The Trouble With Capitalism is accurate, even the recent election of Barack Obama and the creation of a Democratic Party-controlled White House staff (headed by Rahm Emanuel--a former managing director of the Wasserstein Perella investment bank, before it became part of Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein) isn't likely to soon reduce the Black jobless rate very much. According to Shutt: ...An assessment based on historical evidence and analysis of the more recent conjecture of economic forces leads us to the conclusiion that only a veritable miracle could avert an eventual...world-wide financial and economic collapse such that the organs of state (whether national or international) will be too impoverished to prevent...Political attention must soon begin to focus on alternatives to the profits system... --bf Labels: Black jobless rate, Bob Feldman, Harry Shutt, unemployment Please consider donating to Dollars & Sense and/or subscribing to the magazine (both print and e-subscriptions now available!). |
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