It's still uncomfortably high - but unemployment rate falls to 7.8 percent

By Catholic Online (NEWS CONSORTIUM)
10/5/2012
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)

U.S. economy is able to creates 114,000 new jobs

Many would say that 7.8 percent unemployment is still too uncomfortably high - but the U.S. unemployment rate has fallen to its lowest level since January 2009, when President Barack Obama first took office. Unemployment dropped to the lowest it has been in almost four years last month, giving President Barack Obama a potential upbeat talking point as the presidential race heads into its final week.

A household survey from which the jobless rate is derived showed 873,000 job gains last month -- the most since June 1983.

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LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - The Labor Department reported last week that the unemployment rate fell to 7.8 percent in September. This figure represents a decline of 0.3 percentage point and the lowest since January 2009. The economy managed to create 114,000 jobs and generated 86,000 more jobs in July and August than first estimated.

A household survey from which the jobless rate is derived showed 873,000 job gains last month -- the most since June 1983. The drop in unemployment came even as Americans come back into the labor force to resume the hunt for work. The workforce had shrunk in the prior two months.

The findings are highly significant this election year, as it is the second last report before the November 6 election that pits Obama against Republican Mitt Romney.

"It's a little confusing, to be honest with you. The number of jobs created wasn't that high but the unemployment rate came down and the participation rate went up a little bit, so it's confusing. All in all, it doesn't change the trajectory of what the jobs environment has been really for the last year," Ron Florance, managing director for investment strategy for Wells Fargo Private Bank said.

The two numbers, the unemployment rate and the non-farm payrolls number come from two separate reports done by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The unemployment report is based on the so-called Household Survey and it measures the number of unemployed as a percentage of the labor force. The Household Survey is seen as highly volatile and many economists give it much credence. The survey includes the unemployed who are out there actively seeking work and it excludes people who have left the work force and are not applying for jobs.

The non-farm payrolls number comes from the establishment survey and is considered the more accurate of the two.

"The rule of thumb when the two surveys tell different stories is to go with what the establishment survey says. However, the household survey provides reasons to be somewhat more optimistic about job opportunities for American workers," Heidi Shierholz, an economist for the liberal-leaning Economic Policy Institute says.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll released after Wednesday's first presidential debate last week showed Romney gained ground and is now viewed positively by 51 percent of voters. Obama's favorability rating remained unchanged at 56 percent.

Economists blame the so-called fiscal cliff for the slowdown in business hiring, which has left millions of Americans working either part-time or unemployed and too discouraged to look for jobs.

� 2012, Catholic Online. Distributed by NEWS CONSORTIUM.

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Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention: The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
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Keywords: Unemployment, job creation, presidential debate, President Obama

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1 - 6 of 6 Comments

J. Bob
7 months ago
Seems Jack Welch, e-CEO of GE, would not believe the 7.8% number, given the modest jobs increase (~114K), as seen on the financial channel..

One could say he smells something cooking in the back room, & it stinks.
Kasoy
7 months ago
At the rate we're going, we'll have 7.3% unemployment by the end of Obama's 2nd term. If another Democrat takes office in 2017 and got re-elected in 2020, we'll have about 6.3% unemployment at the end of 2024. The election issue is not the current state of unemployment. Rather it is the rate of improvement. Many ask: Could it had been better?
vance
7 months ago
This is the "October Surprise".
vance
7 months ago
Obama appointed two radical leftists to the Labor Dept recently. Cooking the books??? HMMMM1
Rob
7 months ago
I have looked and looked but have never seen any write up about the number of jobs that were permanently lost once the real estate fraud bubble popped. When you consider the amount of money just sucked out of our economy when that bubble burst, so did the jobs. Our economy is mostly a consumer based economy so of course things were great when folks were treating their home equity like piggy banks. But now we are left with a bitter reality. Real wages for most working people have remained flat and what little raises their are have been gobbled up by ever increasing healthcare cost. In the 15 years I've been out of college, that has been my experience. We barely make anything anymore and now that the easy cash is gone, I just don't see where all these jobs are going to come from. I wonder if this rate is our real rate?
mdoweht
7 months ago
The Republicans are in the curious position of having to convince the country that it is in terrible shape, but it is not their fault. In fact, even though all the economic indicators are improving, Mitt has to argue that he could somehow do better, even though he would adopt the same terrible policies that W. did, which got us into this mess to begin with.

But the Republicans can suspend belief on Taxes, Terrorism, Global Warming, Evolution, and a lot of other issues. So they are practiced in fairy tales, and some of them will believe it, but not enough to get Mitt elected.

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