Guest Post by Paul Craig Roberts
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the US economy created 148,000 new private sector jobs during July. The jobs number does not translate into employed people as increasingly Americans hold two or more jobs. For example, the BLS reports that from June to July the number of multiple job holders rose by 233,000 which is 85,000 more than the 148,000 new private sector jobs. What we are seeing is not more people employed, but more multiple job holders. Since May the number of multiple job holders has increased by 534,000. https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t09.htm
The claim of a falling rate of unemployment over the past decade is inconsistent with the falling labor force participation rate. Normally, when employment prospects are good the labor force participation rate increases. To explain away the inconsistency, economists claim that the decline in the labor force participation rate reflects the increased retirements of the baby boomer generation. However, the BLS reported that the labor force participation rate for older workers of retirement age surged to the highest level in 7 years.
So, what is really going on? The answer is that retired people, thanks to the Federal Reserve’s low to zero interest rate over the last decade, cannot live on their pensions and their savings. They have to take part-time jobs to make ends meet. Younger people, however, cannot form independent households on the basis of part-time jobs, and as they have no pension income to supplement the meager pay of a part-time job, have dropped out of the work force.
The reason the reported unemployment rate is low is that the millions who have dropped out of the labor force because they cannot find life-sustainable employment are not counted as unemployed. What do these people do? They live with parents or grandparents and they work cash jobs house sitting, walking dogs, cutting grass, and various handiman jobs.
There are many problems with the payroll jobs report, and always are. For example, the July report finds 16,000 new manufacturing jobs, but the manufacturing index weakened for the fourth consecutive month. How do manufacturing jobs rise when manufacturing activity declines?
Another anomality is the collapse of seven trucking companies this year. if the economy is so good, why has demand declined for transportation to move goods from producers to warehouses and from warehouses to retail outlets?
Americans live in a world in which explanations are controlled. The facts are whatever serves the interests of the ruling elites. Identity Politics serves to keep Americans disunited. We hear far more about “white supremacy” and “misogyny” than we hear about the agendas that control our existence.
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My stepson just picked up a second job to support his family. That is the BLS increase in jobs.
Two jobs for every worker and UBI for all!
M G
I thought he was a software genius. No disrespect intended. Isn’t that a great paying job with great benies?
That’s the other son… the brat in Kansas City is the rocket scientist. He showed up yesterday.
(By the way? Now that he is hauling in the big dollars and paying those taxes, he no longer believes in UBI. He thinks the people would waste the money anyway.)
And, yes… it is unbelieveable the benefits he’s getting. Full medical care including pharmacy ON SITE. Gymnasium on site. Recreational room with dozens of old arcade games (PacMan! whee… I preferred Ms. PacMan, of course.) Other cool stuff that sounds really awesome. I suppose it is supposed to make it all worthwhile, but in some ways I’m still peeved about him wrecking my Jeep, THEN deciding to NOT buy it. Since he manned up and came for Dad’s birthday, he’s forgiven. Build that bridge and get over it, I say.
The dog is still #1 son.
The poverty stricken stepson working two jobs to pay bills is my husband’s son by his first marriage. His first wife, the lesbian. That’s what I say when my husband points to any of my life mistakes. I say, “At least I didn’t marry a lesbian and have a child.” Vince, in addition to being dragged around the country by a woman living an really scummy lifestyle, has limited IQ points, scoring 87 and 89 on a pair of test administered the year after we married and he was tested at school. The school agreed to keep him in “regular” classes and the young guy worked hard.
But, when his mother moved him away, he dropped out of school within a year or so (age 15) and all we could do was pay for him to get a GED a couple years later. It was a mess, but we all did the best we could. It is all my Lord requires.
Of course, most of us here know I’ve done things I’m not proud of too, but I’m forgiven. So are we all.
MG
Bwahahabababa, M G sometimes you give me the best laughs!
I am what I am… I knew a sailor man who said that…
Not a genius at all. Just a brat with Aspergers and a particular liking for puzzles and mazes. He did manage to get a good starter job… Not 92K like on Stucky’s list of top ten, but in the 70s in KC is probably similar due to cost of living issues.
Still butthurt over Hillary ?
You speak of Hillary a lot , give it up she lost because she sucked as a person and a candidate . Trump has not been able to do squat over all because of the left and right in congress maintaining status quo . No one is effectively engineering an economic fix because there is none ! We are witnessing a slow motion economic train wreck of historical proportions and no one is immune from its destruction ! Just a few who think when it crashes the have nots won’t attempt to literally eat the haves left intact !
Did you miss the “?” ? Another DS shill trying to talk people into a bad economy. SMH
FYI, I busy as a 1 arm wallpaper hanger. My economy is rockin.
Remember our government controlled by the circle jerk of Wall Street to K- Street to Capitol Street still claim ketchup to be a vegetable and housing health care fuel and food costs do not affect the cost of living .
That $15 bucks per hour at Amazon is great as long as you don’t stop to take a piss during your shift !
Still hawking gold investments LMAO how about lead brass and barter items like toilet paper and alcoholic beverages . Considering prostitutes in some areas are suppling services for the price of a “Happy Meal”and very few jobs other than government pay enough to live a normal healthy lifestyle let alone save and invest
Understanding the micro economy means understanding Obamma Care.
You can plug in your projected earning for the upcoming year. Those projections determine your monthly premium.
If you exceed 50 k, you will pay at least 15k in penalties for the Silver Plan.
I predict more people will go back to work once they turn 65 and are eligible for medicare. Their effective marginal tax rate will plummet.
19 times Trump trashed Obama’s jobs numbers as “fake”:
The Trump administration never changed the way the unemployment rate is calculated from that same fraudulent way it was calculated under Obama. Now Trump say’s the numbers are all REAL AND TRUE NOW.
https://theguardiansofdemocracy.com/trump-called-obamas-jobs-numbers-fake-19-times-today-hes-celebrating-julys-jobs-report/
Dr. Copper cratered this week below a major long term support. 90 day t-bill yield also heading lower in a hurry. Not an indicator of a strong economy. The opposite, in fact.
It’s long past obvious the statistics bureaus are lying about GDP, unemployment, inflation, and most other things they measure. Yet, month after month, they’re dutifully reported by MSM and the alternative media. The latter often question the accuracy of the stats, but it’s the same story every time. I’ve read the story above dozens of times over the last several years. All the above and every summary of government economic reports should merely read, “The government lied about unemployment/GDP/inflation again this month, so we won’t bother you with the details.”
i saw a report a couple of days ago that new truck(semis) orders are down 80%–
last year or ’17,don’t remember which,was a record year but that’s still a huge drop–