Recently in the Berkshire Eagle was an article about the jobless rate in Massachusetts increasing .2% this past month. It has gone up from 6.1% in July to 6.3% in August. This was caused by the loss of 4,800 jobs during the month from sectors such as construction and education and health services.
Although the jobless rate slightly increased in our state last month, in the past couple of years it’s actually been decreasing pretty steadily. This can be clearly seen by looking at the third and fourth graphs in the second link. The third graph, titled “unemployment”, shows the number of people in Massachusetts who have been unemployed every month since 2002. The fourth graph, titled “unemployment rate”, shows the percent of the population of Massachusetts who are jobless. This graph uses the same time line. Both graphs are seasonally adjusted, meaning seasonal jobs and jobs that are affected by the weather have been excluded from the data. The table underneath the graphs gives specific numbers of both people and percentages. The last two columns of the table show that the lowest unemployment rate was from March 2007 to January 2008 at 4.5%, averaging 153,572 people unemployed. The highest the unemployment rate has been in the past 10 years was in August 2009 to February 2010 at 8.7%, averaging 301,561 people unemployed. As of now, we’re almost directly in the middle with 218,753 people unemployed.
Unemployment is also dropping little by little in the United States as a whole. The third link contains a table showing that the unemployment rate decreased .2% from July to August. The graph above it makes it easier to visualize the fluctuation of the percentages month by month for the past 10 years. Both the table and the graph are seasonally adjusted and it is noted that the data comes from people ages 16 and up. Using the numbers from the table it’s easy to calculate averages, which show that unemployment in the U.S. was at it’s lowest in 2006 and 2007 at 4.6% and at it’s highest in 2010 at 9.6%. The country is currently at an 8.2% unemployment rate but that’s only the average from January 2012 to August 2012; it can (and probably will) change with the coming months.
Sources:
http://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LASST25000003
http://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS14000000
I think this is good to talk about. Not a lot of people realize this is happening and if they do, they don’t realize how bad it is. The charts you had really made you realize how bad its been. I like how you also showed how its like in Massachusetts, I didn’t know that. Unemployment is a serious issue and needs to be fixed.
The unemployment rates that you show make me very worried about my future. I get a little frustrated at times when I think about the lack of jobs because I like many other students am going to school to be able to come out and have a steady full time excellent career. I have no problem starting at the bottom and working my way up, I just hope when I get there, there’s a bottom to start at!
I am also concerned not only for myself but for my college attending niece and nephew. What will be available for jobs when they graduate college? I am earning my degree to hopefully advance in my current position, but even with that, there are no guarantees. I am grateful just to have a jon to go to everyday even if if isn’t my dream job. So many people in this area alone have been laid off or businesses close, leaving so many people out of work. Therefore, it snowballs into every other aspect of their lives, so many homes in foreclosure and many others lacking health care.
I noticed that the unemployment rate is at least decreasing even though it is not by very much. I noticed that within the past 4 years is when it was at its highest. It showed fluctuation from 7.8%-10%. That is just to high. Our economy isn’t the best right now, so we all do what we can. I just feel for those just coming out of college looking for a job and have to struggle to make ends meet. We all have to be thankful when great opportunitties come our way. I know I am. That I found the perfect job before finishing school, and they pay for me to go. Times will change we all need to stay positive.
Unemployment has become such a big issue, and for good reason. The information you included shows that even though unemployment has been slightly decreasing it is still a big problem. The recent decrease (.2%) is a small, but hopefully the rate continues to drop. It seems that when the jobless percentage increases it increases by bigger amounts than when it decreases. For example, it
There is this myth that as long as you have a college degree, you are going to do really well for the rest of your life. Ok, it can be true, if you go into a major where there is a real demand for your degree. And if you are willing to go where the work is. And if you are in the right place at the right time. And if you know how to get through the online application vetting process by entering the right words in the application, so you make it through the first few rounds before a real human being actually looks at your resume (hint: enter words that match the job description). In the end it is the same as it always was, it is who you know. Rarely does a person get a great job by filling out an application and handing in a resume.
It does look hopeful according to the graphs you posted that the unemployment rate is going down gradually and I am sure as the economy keeps getting better and people feel more secure about spending money this will reflect in the unemployment rate and more jobs. I am a product of the 2011-2012 unemployment population and because of it I have begun to start a totally new career and am working toward another degree after being in my previous career for over 10 years because there are still no jobs available in that field. I am hopeful by the time I obtain my 2nd degree that the “baby boomer” generation will be retiring and there will be more jobs available in my new field.
This is a great topic. Unemployment is very scary right now. People who have kept their jobs over the past few years should consider themselves lucky. It is frightening for people who are getting an education, wondering if there will be any stability in the job market when they enter the field of their chosen career. Some jobs that don’t require more than a high school diploma are being taken by people who are overqualified for the position because they can’t get jobs in the area of their expertise. It is hopeful to see the unemployment rates are going down and I hope they continue to do so.
I also think this is a good topic to talk about. It really makes people that are attending college nervous about getting a job when we graduate. Hopefully the unemployment rate will go down more when that does happen. the graphs defiantly made it easier to understand. You provided a lot of good information.
Unemployment is worrying for all of us – especially for upcoming college graduates and people with families to support. Any job is better than no job, and more and more people are saying that they really wasted their time gaining a degree in college. I don’t think that a degree is overrated as people make it out to be. It’s simply hard to find jobs in this market due to the amount of people all seeking the same jobs, decrease in businesses, and the higher costs of paying for a college education. Many graduates are totally paralyzed by debt, and have to work incredible hours while trying to pay off debts and find a job.
Unemployment is a serious issue, especially for people who have the college degree and have worked all of their lives in their position and all of a sudden find themselves in the unemployement line. What is scary is that it leaves everyone scrambling for entry level jobs just to put food on the table. People are sacraficing and accepting positions and jobs that they would have never accepted in the past.
The first thing that struck me when looking at the graphs was what could happen to make the labor force increase by 100,000 people in 2005???
The real piece that I am interested in however, is some sort of information around the percentage of jobless in America that are “permanently” jobless or should I say, jobless by occupation? There are many people who choose to take advantage of unemployment benefits. To be able to stay home and still bring in an income, however small, is tempting for some people. The article below describes how a large amount of those on unemployment have been there for over 6 months. It also talks about the ramifications of that, including less tax dollars.
http://www.newyorker.com/talk/financial/2012/04/30/120430ta_talk_surowiecki
The unemployment problem is a huge issue! One problem is that if you are lucky enough to get an education, you go into debt and alot of times can not even find a job in that field. Now you owe money and are making minimum wage at a job you are by far overqualified for. I have a friend that studies child psychology and is now working at a Starbucks. I also have a friend that is a nurse, could not get anyone other than a nursing home to hire her because of lack of experience, sad thing is they pay the CNA’s almost as much as the RN’s.