Jobs report misses mark by 24,000
There’s good news and bad news.
The bad news is economists missed their forecast for jobs growth by 24,000.
The good news is that the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) indicates a growth of 162,000 jobs. This is the most significant increase within the last three years. That’s great news, but there’s more bad news…
Not that this is all bad, but consider the types of jobs that are part of that 164k growth number. Executive-level, high-paying jobs are NOT returning. Businesses are now operating leaner than ever and they’re not going back to the good ole days. This is good and bad. Good for the longterm economy leading to a more stable and sustainable growth, while bad for job-hunters.
Furthermore, to my surprise, I’ve discovered that the BLS stops counting those unemployed after a 6-months as “unemployed” and the military are not even considered as a part of the labor force… leading to even more skewed numbers.
Actual unemployment for Gulf War Veterans in 2009 was over 10.2%. You don’t see this on the evening news nor in headlines.