Discussion: Unemployment Fell To 3.6 Percent In April, Lowest It's Been In 50 Years

[nishna]

“It’s only May and the federal deficit is already higher than in all but five full year deficits in U.S. history.

It's only May and the federal deficit is higher than it was in all but five...

[mondfledermaus]

Unemployment Fell To 3.6 Percent In April, Lowest It’s Been In 50 Years

Trump is going to be whining all weekend about how unfair the media is with him for not worshiping him.

Now we all know that this is happening because they have been force feeding the economy with humongous deficits, and one of these days, probably when republicans are out of office is going to crash and burn.

[drtv]

THANKS OBAMA!

[wtfinsc]

Employment isn’t a solid indicator. Everyone could be employed, but at what wage?
Wage stagnation and family earnings with regards to increasing costs (college/healthcare/energy) is an area that High Highness doesn’t want to discuss.

[sanni]

Sec. Acosta under the Dept Labor (Bureau of Labor Statistics), I think.

[sedonaz]

@captaintangent

My R “friends” used to argue the same thing when Obama was in office. They would go on about the “effective unemployment rate” being much higher because of how the feds calculate these numbers. I doubt they will be singing that tune today…because that would just be inconvenient.

Correct. According to the Fox version of reality, the unemployment rate dropped from 42% to 4% the month Trump took office.

[bonvivant]

@ronbyers

Where do those people work?

Advocacy Programs, Hire Crowds and Manage Events with Crowds on Demand

I’m pretty sure that’s where the Trump campaign hired those POC to stand behind him at the Green Bay rally.

[georgeh]

Deficit spending is an amazing stimulus.

[clearwater]

The average doesn’t mean much. If Bill Gates and ten unemployed homeless folks were in a room together, on average they’d all be billionaires. A more telling number would be the median hourly rate. The average however does make a good case for raising the minimum wage, now basically a quarter of what they’re calling average.

[paulw]

@ronbyers

My company has a lot of tech employees who make more than twice that amount. They lift the average. So do booming economies in places like Northern Virginia. In the heartland people still struggle to top $15.00 per hour.

Anecdata: I was at the local food co-op (which is unionized and pays a “living wage”) and a couple of stockers were discussing a friend who had been working at the big grocery store in the next town over. After 15 years of service he had reached the lordly wage of $12 an hour.

[bdtex]

@ronbyers

My company has a lot of tech employees who make more than twice that amount. They lift the average. So do booming economies in places like Northern Virginia. In the heartland people still struggle to top $15.00 per hour.

I was thinking about Iowa when I heard the report this morning. If you look at where the gains were,the report is not reflective of what’s going on there. It might be good this election cycle,that Iowa comes first.

[khyber900]

It’s a good economy. Yes, there are some danger signs, weak spots, and the fiscal situation is such that it could fall apart quickly, but this is a good economy. This is all the more reason to impeach. If you don’t hit Trump where he’s weak (he’s a crook), he will campaign on where he is reasonably strong (the performance of the economy) and argue that all that other stuff is a side show.

Dems can decide to run like it’s 2004 and have a muddled message on key issues (Iraq War and Gay Marriage) or run like 2006/08 where they had a clear message (End the Iraq War, fix Health Care, Tax fairness, Restore America’s standing in the world). They can’t do both. One method leads to defeat. The other leads to historic victories.

[sedonaz]

@clearwater

A more telling number would be the mean hourly rate.

I think you mean ‘median,’ but yes, that would be a more telling number. Also more telling would be a breakdown by quintile, which in fact shows that there is currently a real wage increase being shared across all wage levels. As much as I despise the current administration, I have trouble seeing this as bad news from an economic perspective.

[ronbyers]

It always has been. The problem is at some point inflation begins to run away. You need experts at the helm not morons like Cain and Moore.

[clearwater]

Quite right. It’s early and fixed.

[darcy]

I’m a bit of a government-data junkie,

If you are then you know these numbers are meaningless as wages are shit and a buck buys you less than it did 40 years ago. That’s all you need to know

[georgeh]

@khyber900

Dems can decide to run like it’s 2004 and have a muddled message on key issues (Iraq War and Gay Marriage) or run like 2006/08 where they had a clear message (End the Iraq War, fix Health Care, Tax fairness, Restore America’s standing in the world). They can’t do both. One method leads to defeat. The other leads to historic victories.

You are so right. The message needs to be visionary and inspiring, not like “Stronger Together” or “I am with her.”

[khyber900]

Well I liked those two slogans, but my point is that elections are about the big issues that define the era. Where and how you stand on them matter. It’s not about smaller issues like opioids, much as they get talked up at town halls. It’s about the big things that define the Trump era: the #trumprussia scandal, America’s standing in the world, the health of our Democracy and society, and domestic policies which exacerbate wealth inequality and do not address the needs of the masses.

[bonvivant]

@sedonaz

there is currently a real wage increase being shared across all wage levels. As much as I despise the current administration, I have trouble seeing this as bad news from an economic perspective.

Then again, rising home prices, rising home valuations and property taxes, rent increases, grocery prices rising, increased car prices, plates, insurance and gasoline are pretty much voiding out the small wage increases.

[ignoreland]

Employment in health care grew by 27,000 in April and 404,000 over the past
12 months. In April, job growth occurred in ambulatory health care services
(+17,000), hospitals (+8,000), and community care facilities for the elderly
(+7,000).

Obamacare will kill the economy!

In April, construction employment rose by 33,000, with gains in nonresidential > specialty trade contractors (+22,000) and in heavy and civil engineering > construction (+10,000). Construction has added 256,000 jobs over the past 12 months.

Does anyone know if those projects, especially the heavy engineering, stems from the infrastructure money Obama put in as a kickstart when he took office. I remember that most of those “shovel ready” projects actually weren’t, but don’t know if they’d been delayed. I know in my area enormous roadbuilding projects that have taken a decade to put together are finally breaking ground.