Hooverville
The unemployment rate declined, last month, from 5.4 percent to 5.2 percent. Below are the comparable rates of unemployment from the exact same stages of President Clinton’s and Bush’s second terms:
March 1997
5.2 = overall unemployment rate
4.5 = for whites
10.7 = for blacks
8.6 = for latinos
March 2005
5.2 = overall unemployment rate
4.4 = for whites
10.3 = for blacks
5.7 = for latinos
The economy created 110,000 W-2 jobs, last month, following a gain of 243,000 in the prior month (as revised). So far, this calendar year, the economy has created 477,000 W-2 jobs.
To put that latter number into perspective, in order for countries like France or Germany, for example, to create that many payroll jobs, in 90 days, their respective governments would have to declare that receiving welfare checks in the mail would hereinafter be considered tantamount to “working.”
There was a larger gain in total employment last month (including 1099 contractor jobs and self-employment), to the tune of 357,000 positions, following a decline in February.
On the other hand, 170,000 people left the workforce, entirely, in March. Alas, there’s no way to determine how many were Democratic Party strategists.
Both average hourly and average weekly earnings, for lower-tiered workers, increased last month.
Note: Additional datahere.
-- Jayson