October 07, 2011
According to the latest Bureau of Labor Statistics’ employment report, the economy added 103,000 jobs in September. While this increase — together with upward revisions to the prior two months’ data, which brought average job growth over the last three months to 99,000 per month — brings job growth almost exactly to the number needed to keep pace with the growth of the labor force, the jobs numbers are still really pathetic.
Nonsense talk of a double-dip has created an environment where even this dismal rate of job growth looks good. The truth is that the economy is continuing to grow at a very slow rate and we are making no progress in bringing the economy back to full employment. One notable bright spot in the latest jobs report is the health care sector, which added 43,800 jobs in September. This number is striking because this seems to be part of an ongoing trend. Health care employment has grown at a rate of 31,400 per month since June, accounting for almost one-third of employment growth over this period. In a very weak labor market, health care jobs are becoming ever more important.
For more, read the latest Jobs Byte.
