Unemployment Down In 36 States in November

[babylonsister]

http://business.theatlantic.com/2009/12/unemployment_by_state_also_improves.php

Dec 18 2009, 12:45 pm by Daniel Indiviglio
Unemployment Down In 36 States in November


The Bureau of Labor Statistics released its monthly state-by-state unemployment data (.pdf) for November today. You might recall that the national unemployment rate declined slightly from 10.2% in October to 10.0% in November. As a result, it shouldn't be surprising that most states also fared well in November, compared to October. Here are some highlights from the report.

The worst state for employment remains Michigan at 14.7% unemployment. That's better than it has been over the past few months however, as unemployment there was 15.3% in September and 15.1% in October. Rhode Island takes the second spot with 12.7% unemployment. South Carolina, Florida and Nevada are all next in line, tied with 12.3%

From October to November, the number of unemployed dropped the most for California, with 45,000 fewer unemployed. That was followed by New York and Texas with 37,000 and 30,000 fewer unemployed.

A whopping 36 states and the District of Columbia saw their unemployment rate decline in November. States who experienced the largest decline by rate included Kentucky and Louisiana where unemployment declined by 0.7%. Connecticut and Nevada saw a 0.6% decline. Seven others' unemployment rate decreased by 0.4%

In six states the rate was unchanged, but eight states actually saw their unemployment rates increase. November was particularly damaging for South Carolina and Florida, who saw their unemployment rates increase by 0.3% and 0.2%, respectively. For Florida, there were nearly 21,000 more unemployed -- far more than any other state. During a month when so many other states recorded fewer jobless Americans, increases like this are particularly troubling.

Here's the usual map showing unemployment in various regions. It looks a lot like last month's:



Note: All of these statistics are seasonally adjusted by BLS.

[Pirate Smile]

1. Potential good news is not allowed here, babylonsister.

K & R :hi:

[Raineyb]

2. I don't find it all that useful to tell people who are suffering that it's getting better somewhere.

If one can't find a job one usually isn't cheered by cheering about the unemployment rate going down for others.

[babylonsister]

4. I'm looking for a job and am glad to see that the employment

outlook is improving. That gives me some hope.

[tonysam]

9. It isn't, at least in Nevada.

link


That's because the falloff in unemployment has come courtesy of a decline in the state's pool of workers, and not because of economic expansion.

Unemployment in Nevada dropped to 12.3 percent in November, down from 12.9 percent in October and a record 13.3 percent in September, according to the latest numbers from the state Department of Employment, Training & Rehabilitation. Joblessness in Las Vegas has dropped even more steeply, sinking to 12.1 percent in November. That's down from 13 percent in October and a record 13.9 percent in September.

Unemployment remains well above its levels in November 2008, when 8 percent of Nevadans and 7.9 percent of Las Vegans lacked jobs.

Observers credit recent declines in joblessness to a smaller work force. Nearly 35,000 Nevadans abandoned the state's labor pool in October and November, either giving up the job hunt or leaving the state, and that makes for a smaller share of residents considered unemployed.

Bill Anderson, chief economist for the employment department, called the dwindling labor force a "troubling trend." A decline in unemployment often indicates that a recession is subsiding, but that's not the case here once you look more closely at the data, Anderson said.
_____

I'd bet it is the same in many other states. There are nowhere near enough jobs being created to absorb the massive numbers of unemployed workers.

Until there is a corresponding rise in job openings, any such figures showing a "decline" in unemployment are bullshit.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

5. Lower unemployment is good news for everybody.

Even the unemployed.

[tonysam]

10. No, it isn't.

If there are not enough jobs being created to absorb the numbers of unemployed, then such "good news" is horseshit, pure and simple.

[Raineyb]

22. Lower unemployment numbers don't count people who have dropped off the rolls and

have stopped looking. It never did.

[Jax]

26. You and Monsanto are humming n/t

[Kahuna]

3. You'd think she would know better by now..

;)

[tonysam]

11. She should. Statistics lie.

Tell me where there are the jobs. They aren't there.

[WT Fuheck]

6. Divide the country into geographical regions instead of states,

and it's getting worse pretty much everywhere.

You can slice and dice statistics a million ways and get a million different pictures.

[tonysam]

14. The ONLY place with "low" unemployment is in the Great Plains

states, not the most desirable places, and also a place where farming is a huge industry.

[WT Fuheck]

17. the least the "economy is improving" dreamers could do

is come up with some halfway decent propaganda...

[quiet.american]

7. K&R nt

[tomm2thumbs]

8. thanks for posting - always great to see the big picture

even amongst the little pictures

[tonysam]

12. WHAT "big" picture? It smacks of propaganda.

n/t

[babylonsister]

18. Why are you so invested in shitting on this thread that has good

news for a change? You know better than the Bureau of Labor Statistics? I don't think so. What are your bona fides that give you more knowledge?

[tomm2thumbs]

23. some folks just like to lay down a rope, hoping for a tug of war

i try not to pick up the ropes that are obviously laid down for that purpose - and thanks again for posting

[Deja Q]

24. I didn't check the post I made yesterday, but

I have seen a couple new businesses spring up.

Not large corporate chain filth, either. Real businesses.

[tomm2thumbs]

25. every little bit helps - getting the momentum starting is often the hardest part

[enlightenment]

13. While it is better than a report saying it's getting worse across

the board, once again the devil is in the details.

In Nevada, the rate went down because people are 1) leaving the state, and 2) dropping off the rolls as their unemployment runs out and they become too discouraged to continue looking for work.

http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/dec/17/las-vegas-jobless-rate-falls-labor-force-shrinks/

Gross figures don't tell the whole story, unfortunately, and I suspect that what is true in Nevada is true in other states as well.

I'm not trying to be a naysayer (and I'd love to be fully employed myself rather than scraping by), but ignoring the facts in favor of wishful thinking won't change the reality of the situation.

[jwirr]

15. Is it just the Christmas hiring of temps? That starts about then. If so

mostly low income jobs that will disappear on Dec. 26.

[progressoid]

19. That's what I was thinking.

I guess we'll find out when the Jan reports come out.

[tammywammy]

21. That's why it's seasonally adjusted. n/t

[leftstreet]

16. This article is propaganda. It ignores the stagnant unemployment pool

It's missing that one little (HUGE) detail

[BeatleBoot]

20. 50% Unemployment in Detroit

33% in the tri-county area

15% in Michigan.