The unemployment rate fell to 4.6 percent in November, almost equal to the pre-recession lows in 2007. However the sharp decline was partly due to people leaving the labor force, the employment-to-population ratio was unchanged at 59.7 percent. It actually fell slightly for prime-age (ages 25-54) workers, from 78.2 percent to 78.1 percent, although it is still 0.7 percentage points above its year ago level.
Most other data in the household survey was positive, most notably a drop of 220,000 in the number of people involuntarily working part-time to a new post-recession low. At the same time, those choosing to work part-time jumped by 327,000. This is likely a dividend of the Affordable Care Act with workers now having the option to get insurance through the exchanges so that they don’t need full-time jobs to get insurance through an employer. This number is now up by almost 2.2 million from December 2013, the month before the exchanges came into existence.
Job growth for the month was 178,000, roughly in line with expectations. The average hourly wage reportedly fell 3 cents in November after a sharp jump reported for October. This is likely due to measurement error, but it does undermine the case for accelerating wage growth. Wages have risen by 2.5 percent over the last year. When we factor in the shift from non-wage to wage compensation (mostly a reduction in health care benefits), this means there is essentially no evidence of wage acceleration whatsoever.
Truthout Is Preparing to Meet Trump’s Agenda With Resistance at Every Turn
Dear Truthout Community,
If you feel rage, despondency, confusion and deep fear today, you are not alone. We’re feeling it too. We are heartsick. Facing down Trump’s fascist agenda, we are desperately worried about the most vulnerable people among us, including our loved ones and everyone in the Truthout community, and our minds are racing a million miles a minute to try to map out all that needs to be done.
We must give ourselves space to grieve and feel our fear, feel our rage, and keep in the forefront of our mind the stark truth that millions of real human lives are on the line. And simultaneously, we’ve got to get to work, take stock of our resources, and prepare to throw ourselves full force into the movement.
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With love, rage, and solidarity,
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