The American labor market remains red hot as the employment-to-population ratio among prime-age workers surged to 80.0% in March, up from 79.5% in February, and total employment increased by 431,000 jobs. The unemployment rate declined to 3.6%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Friday. The ... READ MORE >
unemployment rate
December jobs report preview: Expect the unemployment rate to fall to 4.1%
We expect a net gain in total employment of 475,000 jobs and a decline in the unemployment rate to 4.1% when the jobs report for December is published on Friday. Strong job creation in higher-paying jobs in goods production, construction, manufacturing, business services and the financial sector ... READ MORE >
Monetary and fiscal policy in a changing economy: Meeting the Fed’s full employment mandate
This is the first of four articles examining monetary and fiscal policy and the Federal Reserve’s response to the overriding issues of today’s economy. This article examines the Fed’s challenge in meeting its mandate for full employment. The second looks at the Fed’s other mandate, for price stability. ... READ MORE >
November U.S. job data: A tale of two reports as unemployment rate fell to 4.2%
The American labor market tightened noticeably in November despite a slower pace of hiring, according to Labor Department data released Friday. Rarely has an estimate produced by the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed such a divergence between the two surveys of the labor market—the establishment ... READ MORE >
Chart of the day: The ‘real’ unemployment rate is 8.2%
The headline U3 unemployment rate of 4.8% for September is probably an undercount of the number of out-of-work people in the United States. Under the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ methodology, those who are out of work and no longer looking for a job are not counted as unemployed and are not included ... READ MORE >