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WASHINGTON – The number of Americans filing applications for new unemployment benefits fell to the lowest level in 44 years, reflecting power outages in storm-ravaged Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands that have disrupted the application process. Initial jobless claims, a proxy for layoffs across the U.S., fell by 22,000 to a seasonally adjusted 222,000 in the week ended Oct. 14, the Labor Department said Thursday. The sharp drop obscures underlying trends in the labor market. Many applying for unemployment benefits in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, which were recently devastated by Hurricanes Irma and Maria, must...

Initial jobless claims, a way to measure layoffs, sank by 22,000 to 222,000 in the week ended Oct. 14. That’s the lowest figure since March 1973 and well below the 244,000 MarketWatch forecast. The more stable monthly average of claims declined by 9,500 to 248,250, though it remains somewhat elevated because of the recent hurricanes.

Washington, D.C. - Recently released unemployment statistics showing black unemployment at a 17-year low are being applauded by members of the Project 21 black leadership network as a triumph of the "commonsense" policies and economic confidence brought about by the Trump Administration. Horace Cooper"Commonsense measures to reduce regulation are a major step in improving American economic conditions," said Project 21 Co-Chairman Horace Cooper, a former leadership aide on Capitol Hill. "Once Congress steps up to reduce taxes and repeal Obamacare, the markets and the economy will skyrocket — taking such good fortunes to black America and the rest of the...

The unemployment rate for African-Americans fell to a 17-year low in September, and the rates for all other major racial and ethnic groups also dropped.

Have a tattoo? If the answer is “yes,” it’s more likely you’re unemployed or completely out of the labor force. On average, your income is lower. You’re more probably a smoker, use illegal drugs, engage in risky sexual behavior, have been a victim of crime, and have been incarcerated for committing crime yourself.

* The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week. * The data was impacted by hurricanes Harvey and Irma. * Initial claims for state unemployment benefits declined 14,000. The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week, but the data was impacted by hurricanes Harvey and Irma, making it difficult to get a clear pulse of the labor market. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits declined 14,000 to a seasonally adjusted 284,000 for the week ended Sept. 9, the Labor Department said on Thursday. A Labor Department official said hurricanes Harvey and Irma...

The retail landscape looks like it's about to get rougher for everyone — especially those on the lowest rung of the ladder. Retail is the largest employer in the US, employing an estimated 4.6 million people in full- or part-time jobs. But estimates also say that the sector has shed more than 89,000 jobs in general merchandise stores alone between last October and May of this year. At last count, over 6,375 stores have been announced for across the country this year. It's this shedding of jobs that's about to create what retail-industry consultant Doug Stephens is calling a "retail...

Reflections on Labor in America, on Labor Day Weekend... The Friday that began Labor Day weekend, 2017, brought with it a disappointing jobs report. While the economy is still growing, and the stock market is booming, the most personal statistic of all – whether a person is employed or not – is the most frustrating one to watch. We should begin the discussion by considering the flaws of these statistics. Unemployment and jobs are tricky things to measure, because a part time job isn’t the same as a full time job, one person’s home business isn’t the same as another...

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits rose slightly last week, pointing to sustained labor market strength that should continue to support the economy. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased by 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 236,000 for the week ended Aug. 26, the Labor Department said on Thursday. Data for the prior week was revised to show 1,000 more applications received than previously reported. Claims have now been below 300,000, a threshold associated with a robust labor market, for 130 consecutive weeks. That is the longest such stretch since 1970, when the labor market was smaller. A...

Trump and the Republicans need to tout the jobs report better. Even ABC radio, which carries Rush Limbaugh and many other top conservative hosts was complaining that weak wage growth was dragging down the economy. NPR said wages were very weak, "this late into an economic recovery." This is shockingly untrue. In the first quarter of the year, real weekly earnings grew two 1982 inflation-adjusted dollars; that's about six real dollars. That's as much as real wages grew during the entire Obama administration. Wage growth then doubled THAT in the second quarter. And while we don't yet know the July...

Democratic Party economists warehoused in academia between elections have spent decades denying that minimum wage increases cause unemployment. Unfortunately, they do. "At the Great Recession's bottom, African-American teens had an unemployment rate of nearly 50 percent while the rate for all teens was 27.1 percent," a column on the BET website notes. "In the weak post-Recession, many teens compete for jobs against down-sized adults with college degrees." "And economists William Even from Miami University and David Macpherson from Trinity University report that when a state, or the federal government, increases the minimum wage, Black teens are more likely to be...

Employment Situation Summary Transmission of material in this release is embargoed until USDL-17-1070 8:30 a.m. (EDT) Friday, August 4, 2017 Technical information: Household data: (202) 691-6378 * cpsinfo@bls.gov * www.bls.gov/cps Establishment data (202) 691-6555 * cesinfo@bls.gov * www.bls.gov/ces Media contact: (202) 691-5902 * PressOffice@bls.gov THE EMPLOYMENT SITUATION -- JULY 2017 Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 209,000 in July, and the unemployment rate was little changed at 4.3 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Employment increased in food services and drinking places, professional and business services, and health care. Household Survey Data Both the unemployment rate, at...

Last month, President Trump signed an executive order to boost apprenticeship programs in the United States. These are training programs, offered in a variety of formats, usually by businesses, to convey skills to individuals for specific vocations. It's a great idea, but like all great ideas, the key is in execution. Currently, 505,000 people have apprenticeships through 2,100 programs registered with the government. President Trump has committed to a lofty goal of creating 5 million apprenticeships over the next five years. Truth is, I get nervous whenever I hear about any government initiative that claims to provide what our...

As a savvy reader, you already know that technological change is why the jobs in manufacturing are drifting away from Youngstown, Ohio. You know that most of the drift goes to other American cities, such as Houston or Chattanooga. You know that Appalachian jobs in coal mining are not coming back, because new techniques have permanently cheapened natural gas. You know that the Trump administration's scapegoat, foreign competition, bears little responsibility for any of this. And when foreign encroachment does happen, you know it's good, not bad, for most Americans. Still, many reasonable people fret. Isn't technological unemployment a real...

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 222,000 in June, and the unemployment rate was little changed at 4.4 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today.

U.S. job growth rebounded in June, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday, as the economy created 222,000 new payroll jobs and the unemployment rate ticked up a tenth of a percentage point to 4.4 percent. Economists in the private sector had projected around 170,000 new jobs for the month. Friday's report provides reassurance that job growth remains strong even as unemployment, which is the lowest rate since 2001, falls to below where Federal Reserve officials think it can sustainably go. Only around around 50,000 to 100,000 jobs are needed each month to match population growth and keep unemployment trending...

Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, 93, on Friday told unemployed youths to "go and herd cattle" in the rural areas amid a critical shortage of jobs in the southern African country. During his election campaign of the 2013 polls, Mugabe promised Zimbabweans that his government would create more than 2.2 million jobs. However, latest statistics indicated that Zimbabwe had a formal unemployment rate of around 80%. Addressing his supporters at a rally at Mucheke Stadium in Masvingo, Mugabe said Zimbabwean youths who had no jobs should look for ideas so that they became entrepreneurs. “We always hear youths from the (opposition...

Maine Labor Department officials say the unemployment rate right now may be the lowest since World War II. In fact, people are finding jobs so quickly, the Labor Department is now having to laid off employees.

New applications for unemployment benefits fell 8,000 to 237,000 in the first full week of June, the Department of Labor reported Thursday. Investors had expected 243,000 new jobless claims. Low jobless claims are a good sign. They indicate that layoffs are relatively rare and that laid-off workers are not showing up at state unemployment agencies to collect benefits. In recent months, jobless claims have scraped the lowest levels in decades, providing one of the most positive signs of the U.S. economy's health. At a press conference Wednesday, Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen said that the labor market appears to be...

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Gallup's Job Creation Index was +37 in May, tied with the record high found in March. This marks 15 straight months of the index reaching +30 or higher. The index has generally been moving upward since bottoming out at -5 in April 2009 during the Great Recession. It has been in positive territory since February 2010. Gallup's Job Creation Index is based on employed U.S. adults' reports of whether their employer is hiring workers and expanding the size of its workforce, or letting people go and reducing the size of its workforce. Gallup computes the index by...