The Department of Labor reported an unemployment rate of 5.8percent for November, unchanged from October. It reported an increase of 321,000 nonfarm jobs over last month. Of this figure, 314,000 were jobs created in the private sector. Employment for September was revised upward from 256,000 to 271,000 jobs created, and October was revised up from 214,000 to 243,000.
The number of unemployed people in November was 9.1 million, an increase from last month’s figure of 9.0 million.
More than five years after the recession ended, the unemployment rate remains above the 5.2 to 5.5 percent range that Federal Reserve officials consider the long-run average, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The number of long-term unemployed, those unemployed for 27 weeks or more, was 2.8 million, accounting for 30.7 percent of the unemployed. During the 1980s, when our country faced a similar recessionary period, the proportion of long-term unemployed never exceeded 27 percent.
The “real” unemployment or U-6 rate is 11.4 percent, down 0.1 percentage point from October. This is the total percentage of unemployed and underemployed workers.
The “real” number of unemployed Americans is 18.1 million. These are people who are unemployed (9.1 million), want work but have stopped searching for a job (2.1 million), or are working part time because they cannot find full time employment (6.9 million).
In November, employment grew by 50,000 in retail trade; 32,000 in leisure and hospitality; 28,000 in manufacturing; and 28,900 in health care. Employment in the mining industry decreased by 1,200; decreased by 4,400 in department stores; and decreased by 5,000 in the motion picture and sound recording industries.
Labor Force Participation
The labor force participation rate is 62.8 percent, unchanged from last month and near the lowest level in more than 36 years. Labor force participation is the same as October of last year. Prior to the recession, the rate stood at 66 percent.
If the labor force participation rate were the same as when President Obama took office, the unemployment rate would be 9.9 percent.
The share of American adults with jobs in November was 59.2 percent, unchanged over the month, and little changed for the last six months. This is more than four percentage points below its pre-recession peak.
Wages
Also of concern to economists is the stagnant growth in wages. Average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls rose by nine cents to $24.66. Average hourly earnings have risen by 2.1 percent year-over-year, only slightly higher than the rate of inflation.
November was the 64th straight month that year-over-year hourly wage growth has been below 2.5 percent. Prior to the recession, wage growth routinely exceeded three percent.