Economy lost another 533,000 jobs in Nov - Worst month since 1974

[Maikeru-sama]

Economy lost another 533,000 jobs in Nov.
Worst month since December 1974 brings total this year to 1.9 million



WASHINGTON - Skittish employers slashed 533,000 jobs in November, the most in 34 years, catapulting the unemployment rate to 6.7 percent, dramatic proof the country is careening deeper into recession.

The new figures, released by the Labor Department Friday, showed the crucial employment market deteriorating at an alarmingly rapid clip, and handed Americans some more grim news right before the holidays.

As companies throttled back hiring, the unemployment rate bolted from 6.5 percent in October to 6.7 percent last month, a 15-year high.

Job losses were widespread, hitting factories, construction companies, financial firms, retailers, leisure and hospitality, and others industries. The few places where gains were logged included the government, education and health services.

The loss of 533,000 payroll jobs was much deeper than the 320,000 job cuts economists were forecasting. The rise in the unemployment rate, however, wasn't as steep as the 6.8 percent rate they were expecting. Taken together, though, the employment picture was dismal.

The job reductions were the most since a whopping 602,000 positions were slashed in December 1974, when the country was in a severe recession.

Job losses in September and October also turned out to be much worse. Employers cut 403,000 jobs in September, versus 284,000 previously estimated. Another 320,000 were chopped in October, compared with an initial estimate of 240,000.

The economy has shed more than 1.9 million jobs so far this year, including 1.4 million in the past four months alone.

Employers are slashing costs to the bone as they try to cope with sagging appetites from customers in the U.S. and in other countries, which are struggling with their own economic troubles.

The carnage — including the worst financial crisis since the 1930s — is hitting a wide range of companies.

In recent days, household names like AT&T Inc., DuPont, JPMorgan Chase & Co., as well as jet engine maker Pratt & Whitney, a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp., and mining company Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. announced layoffs.

Fighting for their survival, the chiefs of Chrysler LLC, General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. will return Friday to Capitol Hill to again ask lawmakers for as much as $34 billion in emergency aid.

Workers with jobs saw modest wage gains. Average hourly earnings rose to $18.30 in November, a 0.4 percent increase from the previous month. Over the year, wages have grown 3.7 percent, but paychecks haven't stretched that far because of high prices for energy, food and other items.

Worn-out consumers battered by the job losses, shrinking nest eggs and tanking home values have retrenched, throwing the economy into a tailspin. As the unemployment rate continues to move higher, consumers will burrow further, dragging the economy down even more, a vicious cycle that Washington policymakers are trying to break.

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[ThaBigP]

Originally Posted by Maikeru-sama

Economy lost another 533,000 jobs in Nov.
Worst month since December 1974 brings total this year to 1.9 million



WASHINGTON - Skittish employers slashed 533,000 jobs in November, the most in 34 years, catapulting the unemployment rate to 6.7 percent, dramatic proof the country is careening deeper into recession.

The new figures, released by the Labor Department Friday, showed the crucial employment market deteriorating at an alarmingly rapid clip, and handed Americans some more grim news right before the holidays.

As companies throttled back hiring, the unemployment rate bolted from 6.5 percent in October to 6.7 percent last month, a 15-year high.

[View Full Quote]Job losses were widespread, hitting factories, construction companies, financial firms, retailers, leisure and hospitality, and others industries. The few places where gains were logged included the government, education and health services.

The loss of 533,000 payroll jobs was much deeper than the 320,000 job cuts economists were forecasting. The rise in the unemployment rate, however, wasn't as steep as the 6.8 percent rate they were expecting. Taken together, though, the employment picture was dismal.

The job reductions were the most since a whopping 602,000 positions were slashed in December 1974, when the country was in a severe recession.

Job losses in September and October also turned out to be much worse. Employers cut 403,000 jobs in September, versus 284,000 previously estimated. Another 320,000 were chopped in October, compared with an initial estimate of 240,000.

The economy has shed more than 1.9 million jobs so far this year, including 1.4 million in the past four months alone.

Employers are slashing costs to the bone as they try to cope with sagging appetites from customers in the U.S. and in other countries, which are struggling with their own economic troubles.

The carnage — including the worst financial crisis since the 1930s — is hitting a wide range of companies.

In recent days, household names like AT&T Inc., DuPont, JPMorgan Chase & Co., as well as jet engine maker Pratt & Whitney, a subsidiary of United Technologies Corp., and mining company Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. announced layoffs.

Fighting for their survival, the chiefs of Chrysler LLC, General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. will return Friday to Capitol Hill to again ask lawmakers for as much as $34 billion in emergency aid.

Workers with jobs saw modest wage gains. Average hourly earnings rose to $18.30 in November, a 0.4 percent increase from the previous month. Over the year, wages have grown 3.7 percent, but paychecks haven't stretched that far because of high prices for energy, food and other items.

Worn-out consumers battered by the job losses, shrinking nest eggs and tanking home values have retrenched, throwing the economy into a tailspin. As the unemployment rate continues to move higher, consumers will burrow further, dragging the economy down even more, a vicious cycle that Washington policymakers are trying to break.

link

The tip of the iceberg - there's a LOT more to come. We have to resolve ourselves NOW that we are all going to stick together as Americans if the world economy completely unravels...and so far it looks like its headed that way.

[bbgun]

[ninja]

Don't worry? Obama has a plan. His plan is for free health care and help to pay the mortgages. Nobody needs a job anymore. Uncle Obama will pay for everything. Why do you think people voted for Dems to have full control? Tax the rich, feed the poor, peace in the Middle East...yadayadayada.

And to pay for all this, Obama said he would tax the rich. Tax away, baby. I ain't rich.

[Sasquatch]

A message from the President-Elect:

"The 533,000 jobs lost last month, the worst job loss in 34 years, is more than a dramatic reflection of the growing economic crisis we face. Each of those lost jobs represents a personal crisis for a family somewhere in America. Our economy has already lost nearly 2 million jobs during this recession, which is why we need an Economic Recovery Plan that will save or create at least 2.5 million more jobs over two years while we act decisively to maintain the flows of credit on which so many American families and American businesses depend.

"There are no quick or easy fixes to this crisis, which has been many years in the making, and it's likely to get worse before it gets better. But now is the time to respond with urgent resolve to put people back to work and get our economy moving again. At the same time, this painful crisis also provides us with an opportunity to transform our economy to improve the lives of ordinary people by rebuilding roads and modernizing schools for our children, investing in clean energy solutions to break our dependence on imported oil, and making an early down payment on the long-term reforms that will grow and strengthen our economy for all Americans for years to come," said President-elect Obama.

[iceberg]

Originally Posted by ThaBigP

The tip of the iceberg - there's a LOT more to come. We have to resolve ourselves NOW that we are all going to stick together as Americans if the world economy completely unravels...and so far it looks like its headed that way.

no need to pick on me now!

[burmafrd]

With global warming you are endangered anyway. No Icebergs will be left soon, according to the wacko's.

[JiggsCasey]

Originally Posted by burmafrd

With global warming you are endangered anyway. No Icebergs will be left soon, according to the wacko's.

Ah, the daily input from the "nothing to see here" contingent...

Yes, everyone's a "wacko"... yet you and yours have pretty much been wrong about 9/10ths of everything the past 6 years... ah well...

meanwhile... reality called ... got your voicemail... left a message, however:

"The economy is now deteriorating with frightening speed and ferocity- it's truly horrific." -- Bernard Baumohl, chief global economist at the Economic Outlook Group.

While the jobless rate rose only modestly, the details of the report contained worse news for American workers. A broader measure of unemployment that includes people who want a job but are not actively looking and people who are working part time but would prefer a full-time job rose more steeply — to 12.5 percent of the work force, from 11.8 percent in October. A year ago, that rate was 8.4 percent.

That suggests that on top of the 10.3 million people who are unemployed, 9 million more Americans are out of work or not getting the hours they want due to the weak economy.

"I'm looking for a silver lining in this report, and I'm not finding it," said Scott Anderson, a senior economist at Wells Fargo.

Curious... have you always missed the point in any thread? Or just recently?