Weekly unemployment claims, reported by the Labor Department, were 6.6 million. This is the largest, by far, in the record books. The last highest (other than last week) was 700K in 1982.
The unemployment rate or the "First Friday Jobs Report" from the Bureau of Labor Statistics will give us our first unemployment rate number of the pandemic crisis. The report will show us the condition of the labor market in March, which will undoubtedly be somber, but still better than April.
The unemployment rate or the "First Friday Jobs Report" from the Bureau of Labor Statistics will give us our first unemployment rate number of the pandemic crisis. The report will show us the condition of the labor market in March, which will undoubtedly be somber, but still better than April.
The declining state of the labor market also hurts because it comes at the heels of one of the lowest unemployment numbers in history. The job gains were widespread and realized among groups that are typically socio-economically disadvantaged. This article from Bloomberg details why the current economic crisis will be particularly damaging to groups like blacks, Hispanic and also the non-college workers who were making hard-fought gains in the job market before the economic shutdown. One of the main reasons is that these workers tend to be concentrated in industries like hospitality, tourism, retail and construction which have been badly affected. The fear is that these jobs, which came available to them in a robust market, will be filled by more educated or skilled workers who also need a job. To make the situation more dire, these "marginal" workers also have lower levels of wealth to provide a safety cushion during hardship.
Test your understanding: "Macoronomics" Quiz #2
Test your understanding: "Macoronomics" Quiz #2
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| (Source: BLS, via Forbes) |
