America's Worst Job Market: What 27.6% Unemployment Looks Like

[Liberal_in_LA]

America's Worst Job Market: What 27.6% Unemployment Looks Like

America's Worst Job Market: What 27.6% Unemployment Looks Like

Rob Silverblatt Rob Silverblatt – Fri Jul 30, 3:25 pm ET

El Centro, Calif., is the largest U.S. city to be situated entirely below sea level. At the moment, it's also home to the country's most underwater job market. Nationally, the unemployment rate sits at 9.5 percent. But in the El Centro metropolitan area, it's a staggering 27.6 percent. And as workers across the country struggle to navigate the anemic labor market, El Centro has emerged as a case study about just how fragile the economic recovery can be.

In recent years, California's multi-billion dollar budget shortfall and its painful cutbacks have gotten plenty of attention. But even by California standards, El Centro's situation is unusually dire. Since the recession hit, the area's housing market has fallen apart, its wages have remained dismal, and its unemployment rate has soared.

Amit Singh, director of operations at the worker-placement firm Labor Finders International, saw firsthand how the recession savaged El Centro's economy. Labor Finders used to have an office in El Centro, but the company was forced to close down that branch earlier this year. "Unfortunately, the economy there was hit hard, and it just wasn't supporting our business. We tried there for many years to find better avenues, but the opportunities were just not there," says Singh. "We just didn't find that there were any future growth opportunities. Actually, the picture looks pretty grim."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/usnews/americasworstjobmarketwhat276unemploymentlookslike

[Donnachaidh]

1. not to pick nits, but I recall hearing that Detroit has a higher unemployment level

Somewhere in the vicinity of 50%? IIRC, it was stated in an npr broadcast. :shrug:

Either way, double digit unemployment ANYWHERE in this country is obscene!

[XemaSab]

2. I'm not in possession of the facts here

but "metro area" might be the distinction here. :shrug: