Unemployment Rate Hits 9.7 Percent As Economy Sheds 216,000 Jobs In August

The national unemployment rate rose to 9.7 percent -- the highest level since June 1983 -- as the U.S. economy shed 216,000 jobs in August, the government announced on Friday morning. That's up from 9.4 percent in July.

By a broader measure that includes forced part-timers and people who'd like to work but aren't looking, the national unemployment rate reached 16.8 percent -- up a staggering 6 percent from this time last year.

The pace of job cuts has steadily slowed since the beginning of the year, when monthly losses exceeded 700,000 in January.

The total number of unemployed is 14.9 million, roughly double the number at the start of the recession in December 2007.

The number of long-term unemployed, those out of work 27 weeks or longer, edged up only slightly in August, from 4.96 million to 4.98 million. At the end of the year, nearly 1.5 million of those people will exhaust their extended unemployment insurance unless the government takes action to further extend their benefits.

And the picture isn't so great for people who are working, either. A report released this morning by the Economic Policy Institute concludes that many workers who have not lost their jobs during the recession have nevertheless taken a hit as a result of sluggish wage growth, reduced hours and involuntary furloughs. Private sector wages have grown at a rate of 1.3 percent over the last six months, less than half as fast as wage growth during 2007 and the first six months of 2008.

"It's an implosion of wage growth far beyond what you would expect" in an ordinary recession, said EPI's Larry Mishel, co-author of the report, in a conference call with reporters. Average wages rose 6 cents in August, according to the Department of Labor.

Other economic indicators this week brought better news. Retail sales fell 2 percent in August from a year earlier, the smallest drop since September 2008. And the Washington Post on Monday reported positive signs in the Men's Underwear Index, the metric reportedly favored by former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan. (The MUI outlook was less positive in April.)

Asked for his thoughts on the MUI, Mishel scoffed. "If Alan Greenspan were so wise, we wouldn't be in this mess," he said.

Click here to read the Huffington Post's stories about regular people dealing with the recession.

Comments

[vippy]

Nothing drives me more nuts than the continued lies. Our unemployment is more like 25%. Look at all the people out of work, some cities look deserted. Why is no one addressing that part. Show the many tent cities. The long lines when a company hires for a position. We have long deleted fulltime
positions for more parttimers but the biggest category now is the "intermittent positions" which is
3 to 19 hours per week. I guess you call those "employed?"

[Rapier]

U6 is over 16%.

[glideair]

Point well taken and I agree, but-------------I don't think we can "micro-manage" things like gluttony, dishonesty, selfishness, greed and "denial", which is what the American Majority is suffering with.
There are no "statesmen" running this country---------they're all lawyers. Are there any questions?
Also-----voting in a two-party system is not the answer!
I do not claim to have the answer for our dilemma, but we could start by making "lobbying" a capital offence. That means, punishable by death. If not---------last one out; turn out the lights!

[themodernleader]

The staggering number of actual unemployed must be forcefully addressed if this nation expects to hold together. Let's face the facts. The Obama bunch have not even uttered a solitary thought about the short or long term solution to our jobs crisis. In the meantime what are 16-20 million permanently vegetating Americans expected to do except go on the permanent public dole, if they would be accepted. And wher is the moanies to come form to pay for such enormous expenditure for absolutely no return to our economic health.
Obama has made two fundamental blunders. First, showing favoritism and destroying our currency by bailing out bad banks and other institutions of finance and backing trillions in bad loans. Second, squandering political capital on second priority issues, that is, pushing the universial health goal instead of the critical goal of putting millions back to gainful and sustained employment.
Outrageously inept, incompetent leadership is expected in a declining organization. And we have it it in unimagined cornucopia in the Obama Administration.

[givesflack]

As for the tax cut feed bag that the Republicans have been eating, those days are over. Did two wars, wall street deregulation, bush tax cuts, and the mortgage bubble lead to

A) An increase in our budget surplus and additional 7 million jobs
B) Better world economic standing and higher wages and income parity
C) Increased manufacturing and productivity and less jobs sent overseas
D A healthier, happier, and prosperous nation
E) None of the above.

It's E for all the di_mwited libertarians and republicans who swiftboat the truth.

[loki]

censorship is alive and well on hufpo

[Topknot]

2012

[Rapier]

It's going to get worse as the unemployment insurance starts to run out for the people who lost their jobs at the peak, and they are forced to cut back spending even more.

[eilish]

Don't forget the over 50% who were refused unemployment. My son went legally blind; when he was refused unemployment I called to ask why. His company put him on medical leave until his blindness was cured. That was a couple of years ago, and the kid is really good with the white cane now, but working on diesel engines is a beeyatch.

[loki]

I know people who have been fired form companies so the company can keep the appearance of still doing well. These people were even told this is why there were being fired. LIke your son, they were denied.

Your son should apply for SSDI if he hasnt already. I know its anything anyone wants to do , but it will at least help. And being blind he is entitled to more through SSDI than any other disability.

[Coastalthinker2]

If multinational corporations continue to ship blue and white collar jobs to other countries, unless there is a great new discovery, what jobs will suddenly improve this economy? Even if the United States suddenly became the worlds great hope for alternative energy, what will stop the multinational corporations from shipping many of the associated jobs overseas?

[Topknot]

You got it. No one will answer your Question because they can't.

[mcmutter]

Johnny McCain kept hollering "fundamentally sound" and no bailouts or stimilus package needed. Under Johnny we'ld be in the midst of the Second Great Depression right about now.

[urweatherman]

Wrong again.....noone, or nothing could have or would have been worse than this! I know its hard for you to admit it, just face the facts!

[scrzbill]

Nothing would have been worse? What fkin planet are you from? bush by design completely and utterly destroyed the economy with his policies. 700 TRILLION dollars was given out to his wall street buddies, banks, and automobile companies BEFORE he left office to keep the worlds economy from completely collapsing. Shrub did not pay for the war. Shrub did not pay for the tax cuts. This is now Obama's fault according to the right. The liberals have been screaming from the rooftops that our children would be paying for those policies. Now it is Obama's fault. Do you work for assley? He blamed Obama for making him say Death Panels. The econonmy was in the tank when Obama arrived. The rebupican solution, the same as what got us into this mess. MORE DEREGULATION, MORE TAX CUTS. What is your brainchild of a solution? Cut more government so it is even less effective than what is was when shrub left. He gutted every agency he did not politicize. That is why the country is broken. There is a party in our country that does not believe in government. Every time they are in power they gut the government. Then it is>The government does not work. See let's get rid of government. BTW The weathermen were a highly respected anti-government group. Your trying to associate with them is an insult.

[swift goat pet for truth]

World Wide Total Economic Implosion which many international economists say Obama's policies avoided, would not have been worse than 10% unemployment.

So, GOPer, what do you use for reality?

[Viper]

We still have not reached the unemployment levels reached in 1982 under Reagan or the 18% interest rates.

Of clourse in those days we had a trade surplus and were the largest credit nation in the world... 8 years of reagan economics changed all of the forever it appears. He trippled the debt in 3 years as did Bush and the only job creation was in Government jobs, just as with Bush. between the 2 we lost 80% of our industrial base and now stay only afloat by the money we borrow from communist countires.


Regards

[mamamay]

I am curious about this Unemployment rate. There are many folks coming home setting up offices in their own homes. Who is keeping tabs on this life style? Remember, Just because one loses a job in the public work place, DOES NOT mean that he or she is unemployed. What is the skinny on the stats regarding this? There's still a lot of money being spent out there inspite of these stats re: economy and unemployment. Let's get real about this.

[Patriot86]

Sure it does...the so called jobs in homes is to ward of starvation pretty much. Things are bad really bad. The question is this---is it 1931? Is this the beginning of a depression? I do not believe the stimulus was large enough thanks to the GOP and so called blue dogs. I sincerely hope things are about to turn around.

[wilray]

I would think from their quarterly tax filings that they would be included.

[eilish]

It's not easy and you can't do it on nothing. Given the numbers of small businesses going bust, it's unlikely that these nice stories are really making a dent. The unemployment rate only tallies new graduates who can't find a job, new unemployment claims, old claims that are still valid. It does not count the 30-50% of people who were refused unemployment bennies. As they are poorly regulated, employers get away with this like gangbusters. It's all in the lingo. Let's see, it doesn't count those who long ago lost their jobs and can't find a job, or those who fall through the cracks completely because they've given up even looking. It doesn't count those who are only on temporary jobs, or those working so few hours they still require food stamps. It doesn't count women who are entering the work force because their husbands have lost jobs, and who can't find work. Basically, the unemployment figure is a total hooey.

[codycap]

Why don't we take a real hard look at all those RICH SOB’s, who are always screaming about illegals. You know the ones I mean. The ones who hire Politicians with campaign donations, and lobbyists, to make sure the immigration laws we have now are not enforced.

YES The ones who scream the loudest are the cause of this mess that hopefully someday a bleedin heart lefty like me can correct. SIMPLY Enforce the law (put those rich bloodsuckers in jail)- do not hire illegals - no jobs - no immigrant problem.

They say no American will do their job. That’s a lie. I have competed with them for jobs and low wages all of my life. I don't blame them but I would be very happy to see them go.

[nopilikia]

Just inforce the laws. What a novel approach. Now just try and get the idiots in the administration and Congress to do that.

[canuck99]

Not that simple. Illegals generate more economic activity than they cost. Just look at your housing industry and your farms. Everytime you eat, an illegal alien was responsible for bringing that food to your table. And despite what you say about illegals paying taxes, everytime an illegal alien spends money in the local economy, he pays sales taxes that goes to the government.

The total amount of money all illegals sends home to their Latin American country is probably just the net income of one oil company that declares this income in the Bahamas to minimize paying US income taxes.

Illegals help the US economy and all businesses know it. It's the rich businessmen who make these hiring decisions, so blame them for bringing in illegal aliens.

[awake108]

U.S businesses just don't get it .Or they don't care because they got theirs(big bonuses that is). Henry Ford number one rule of economic. You have to pay your employee enough to buy your product or whose is going to buy it. You can ship the jobs to China and have them made by slave labor but if you don't pay them enough to by the product and americans don't have jobs and can'[t afford to buy it. Whose left to buy it??? I think they don't care if they kill the middle class and turn this country into a third world dictatorship. The poor and uneducated are easily manipulated. If you want to see where conservative economic leads us look to South America.

[Patriot86]

Exactly right!. Henry Ford created a middle class and a strong America with this concept. Your workers become your customers. The GOP and so called conservative Dems pretty much i are destroying the middle class which will lead to much suffering and poverty with the so called free trade policies which force American companies to compete with third world socialist countries....thus the new auto worker who makes $14 per hour and has no health care will never buy a new car. This is not a victory of any sort. We are sowing the seeds of our destruction. We can not remain a military power if we are bankrupt as the USSR learned the hard way. Whenever the money becomes concentrated in the top 5% as has happened under Bush, one can expect the economy to melt down.

[eilish]

You are spot on. Friend in Detroit told me today that when a GM plant closes, no matter what you were making you have to take a job at a plant they're keeping - even if it's out of state. You go over at the $14/hour rate, and you get no bennies. GM shot themselves in the foot - who did they think bought all those big expensive SUVs??

[Viper]

They are not U.S. businesses.. they are multinational businesses... and thus their goals and whats good for America diverged about 20 years ago.

Thats why other countries have industrial plans to compensate for the fact that a company in a global economy does no longer have the best interest of our country or any home country at heart. Its just a a market.. and if they can screw America and hurt a market of 300 million, but build a new market of 3 billion in the East.. well thats what they will do and have been doing..


Regards

[4TJefferson]

So the "Other Planet" rethugs want to put all their anger on Obama. So what. The unemployment rate was 8% before Obama took office. Rethugs take responsibility for the 8% and Obama for the 2% since then; ok. The $680 billion in stimulus is not even a third available or spent yet. Rethugs had no problems spending $15 billion a month in Iraq but want to scream and yell about spending in America on Americans. The rethugs can go back to their crack pipes now.

[urweatherman]

Democratic controlled Congress is responsible for the 8 % and Obama the rest......we need to take back the unspent stimulus NOW!

[Patriot86]

Do you GOP types ever learn? The economy melted under Bush...unemployment increased massively under Bush. Since the stimulus, the rate of unemployment filings has actually decreased from 600,000 to about 200,000 this last month. Take back the stimulus and we will enter a depression. Can none of you think anymore-blinded by your hatred of Obama because you lost ? You are acting like a bunch of whiny babies. Like it or not, the truth is that Bush squandered a surplus on what is beginning to look like two UN-winnable wars...you want to talk wasting money. This benefited no one. It used to be that at least companies made money during times of war, but not under the GOP which is has outsourced even America's weapons manufacturing.

[Viper]

The idea of a Rethug simulus plan is a cost plus military contract ( thats where a company makes more by increasing costs.. the opposite of capitalism) builds a bomb, drops it in Iraq and then pays to rebuild what they just blew up! Or building 161 billion dollar fighters that can't fly in the rain... but building bridges and dams here instead of in Iraq, now thats a waste of money.

Or giving tax cust so that the money flowed to China, built new shiny plants there and then 7 million of our MFG went there!

Regrads

[4TJefferson]

Rethugs break the economy and Democrats fix it; that's just how it is. But hey "Ur" a spaceship to planet Pluto is waiting for you on loading platform H. Have a nice trip.

[Peter007]

The democrats promised a "jobs" bill with shovel ready programs designed to create jobs. It was to be signed January 21. 2009. The cost of each job was about $80,000 but the democrtas pushed it through.
Now jobs are stil being lost and the only jobs created by Democrats are political jobs in DC. Also, teachers and police and other employees receiving a government check, get to keep getting their government check.

[LDS50]

Sources? (I think you made that stuff up - or heard it on Fox).

[Peter007]

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=100295436

[Viper]

First in 8 years under Bush no NET Private sector jobs were created. 7 Million MFG jobs lost. The national debt was trippled by a man who inherited the largest budget surplus in our history as opposed to Obama who ingherited the largest deficts of any president in history and the hioghest monthly job losses along with 2 wars!

80K to create a job is cheap. The average cost is over 200K per job.

If Tax cuts stimulated an economy that nolonger makes what it buys such that it stimulates China's economy more, then given BUSH's large tax cuts still in effect plus his tax refund last year of 150 Billion and that the repug wanted tax cuts in this bill now going out ....then this recession does not exist! LOL....

Regards

[eilish]

Actually, that's not quite true. My son was unemployed for over a year, but a couple of weeks ago he found a really great job. He's working for a startup solar company that got 'green jobs' money from the stimulus plan. The company already has orders backed up for 5 years and is looking into expanding into AZ or NV.

[gadnynj]

If "American Citizens" (because we have zillions of non-citizens Permanent Legal Residents living in the United States making much noise in our national debates) insist tying the number of annual Permanent Legal Resident Visa allowances with the actual numbers of jobs lost, we, as a united nation would solve the problem of jobs lost, and its effects, and its recovery.

According to CNNMoney.com the USA, lost over 2,000,000 jobs, in first three quarter of 2009. Every year, USCIS (Immigation agency) allows over 1,000,000,000 foreigners entries, allowing them civil rights, free education, free medical care, free legal representation; all with no oblication to become a citizen. These numbers in reality reveal a total of job lost at 3,000,000,000+ for 2009. Because these number do not included the total of visiting foreigner overstaying on their visa, thereby becoming an undocumented illegal the total of jobs need to recover is more like four, five or six million (over 5 million). This means that the USCIS (US Immigration agency) would need to limit or totally shut down allowances for entry into United States, until our recovery.

That is the bottom line, the only logical method of solving and recovering. Until I see or hear that the Federal Government is addressing to resolve our lost of jobs in this only logical manner, I fear we will not recover anytime soon. America is too good for her own self!

[canuck99]

So I guess you're ready to start picking apples, or cleaning high-rise buildings at 2 in the morning, or washing dishes starting Friday night until early Saturday morning, or perhaps building a house in the middle of winter.

[AllenPapapetrou]

"total job lot at 3,000,000,000+ for 2009"

3 billion is ten times the population of the USA!

Huh?!?