After the U.S. Department of Labor announced that October's unemployment rate was 10.2%, one thing that was left unsaid was the number of people who have been unemployed so long they've given up looking for work, not to mention the people who are working part-time but would rather be in full-time jobs. According to the NY Times, "In all, more than one out of every six workers — 17.5 percent — were unemployed or underemployed in October. The previous recorded high was 17.1 percent, in December 1982."
After the DOL's unemployment numbers announcement, Christina Romer, the chair of the President's Council of Economic Advisers, posted this chart some and thoughts to the White House's blog, writing, "Today's employment report contained both signs of hope for recovery and painful evidence of continued labor market weakness," noting that the "steady trend of moderating job loss that began last spring" was continuing and there is a "typical lag between GDP growth and unemployment decline." In other words, the stimulus hasn't been factored in yet!
However, she added, "Having the unemployment rate reach double-digits is a stark reminder of how much work remains to be done before American families see the job gains and reduced unemployment that they need and deserve." NY Times op-ed columnist Charles Blow agrees—and thinks President Obama needs to act quickly on this issue and wants him to stop blaming President Bush to leaving him this mess.
