Why isn't this getting more attention- the 6.6% unemployment rate released on Friday

[malaise]

is the lowest since 2008.

[greymattermom]

1. workforce participation

seems to be declining. That's the news item now.

[malaise]

3. The only people who buy that crap are those

who believe corporations should decide who does and doesn't get health care.

[Motown_Johnny]

14. It went up last month

That was part of the good news in the report.


Also, people forced to work part time declined (more full time work available).

[yeoman6987]

2. I think it is because of the people who lost their unemployment

It really is a mixed bag. It is good that unemployment is going down, but the reason is because so many people lost their unemployment benefits and are not included in the unemployment numbers. Better to ignore than have it mentioned and people find that out.

[Mariana]

15. Unemployment benefits don't figure into the unemployment rate

according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics:

Persons are classified as unemployed if they do not have a job, have actively looked for work in the prior 4 weeks, and are currently available for work. Persons who were not working and were waiting to be recalled to a job from which they had been temporarily laid off are also included as unemployed. Receiving benefits from the Unemployment Insurance (UI) program has no bearing on whether a person is classified as unemployed.

http://www.bls.gov/cps/lfcharacteristics.htm#unemp

[JoePhilly]

4. Because UE dropping from 10.2% to 6.6% is no longer important.

It used to be important. Obama's election and then reelection were going to cause UE to sky rocket.

But that didn't happen, so its not important anymore.

[malaise]

7. Do you remember the outrage when UE dropped to 7.7 before the election?

Now there is dead silence

[JoePhilly]

12. Its amazing ... UE goes up, BAD news ... UE goes down, also BAD news.

Wait, wait ... I know, let's stop using the same UE calculation that's always been used for every other President, and use a different one ... which one??

.... gimme a minute to find the one that looks the worst!!! Then, lets compare that one to this one!

[malaise]

13. You nailed it

[madokie]

5. Can't be having the Proles seeing that the policies of Obama and Democratic

lawmakers are working is my guess.
Our news is brought to us by the same people who profit from us being kept in the dark about matters that matter.

[Cha]

6. thanks madokie.. no good news about our President and his

policies are allowed. End of story.

[malaise]

9. Thread winner

[liberal N proud]

8. Because it is the lowest since 2008

That would indicate that someone is doing things right and if you spend all your time blaming the current President for the problems created by the previous president...


Well the media doesn't want egg on their faces, so they will quietly sweep this under the rug.

[malaise]

10. +1,000

but Liberal and Democratic folks should be talking more about this as well.

[reformist2]

11. Because it's total bs - and everyone knows it.

[riderinthestorm]

16. Maybe because the kinds if jobs being created aren't good jobs?

I don't have an answer malaise but I don't think the jobs people are getting are very good

[malaise]

17. When UE increases no one says that

They simply scream where are the jobs. Only when the numbers are down do we ever hear that the jobs aren't good ones.

[spanone]

18. Shhhhhh, that would be a plus in Obama's column...

can't have that!!!

[malaise]

19. Ding ding we have a winner

[seveneyes]

20. Because maybe it is not believable

I guess it's possible that somewhere in the US there are living wage jobs opening up. When that kind of result is shown, these numbers would become more realistic.

[malaise]

21. But the same data was believable when the UE rate was going up?

[seveneyes]

23. Because the numbers supported the pain

The pain is still there, and in some cases, getting worse. With better numbers, the opposite should be true.

Nothing funny about people hurting from lack of work and livable income.

[McDiggy]

22. IMO, the REALLY big number is the U-6 number.

U-6 has gone from 15.4% to 12.7% from Jan 13 to Jan 14. That's the broadest number that includes discouraged, part timer that want full time, etc.

The reason the participation rate is plummeting has a lot to do with baby boomers retiring. It was predicted to happen. Though its still higher than was anticipated form just retirement. With the Dow all sorts of high right now, it can only encourage more and more people to retire. With Obamacare taking 2 million people out of the workforce that are only working for health insurance (i.e. the spouses of modestly successful small business owners), that will reduce the workforce even more and promote lower unemployment as well as less part time work in lieu of full time work.

The jobs report an outlook are better than people are giving it credit for.