Fascists always fail and they always fail spectacularly. We get to see that failure now.
Fascists use fear and false information to cow weak minded people and grab power. However, in real events they are useless because they only know how to grab power and have no ability to govern because their assumptions about the world are wrong. So, armed with a fake reality they go forth to battle real things with no clue as to what really should be done.
4
I wish people could put aside their political affiliations when commenting on NYT articles pertaining to the economy.
3
Just amazing numbers for Trump.
1
"The good news is that these workers had some cushion ahead of time. It helps blunt the blow.”
Could you be any more clueless?
This statement is akin to someone reporting on the Titanic:
"The good news is that the passengers had some cushion ahead of when they had to put on life jackets and jump into freezing water".
Ignorant.
When will these people, supposed experts, stop using the "unemployment numbers" as though it was a meaningful indicator of the economy experienced by the majority of Americans? Their continued use of this completely misleading statistic is journalistic malpractice.
Just look at the charts here. The "Monthly change in jobs" clearly shows that since about 1980 we have yet to achieve the levels in prior decades. Hmmm...I wonder if this has anything to do with Reaganomics and the "trickle down" economy we've had since then?
And look at "Year-over-year wage growth" to see that we have yet to even reach pre-Crash levels over a decade later!
But ain't things swell?
It's this ignorance, propped up by misinformation that keeps us stuck in a failing system. And ignorance is the petri dish of fear, so that people are too afraid to do anything about it. It's what enabled the Dark Ages and feudalism to remain for centuries. People putting their trust in a handful of really powerful people because "They must know what's best since they're so powerful", kept them oppressed for hundreds of years.
We had "low unemployment" during slavery too.
5
No more has to be said about the robust job market reports than this : Mitch McConnel’s wife is in charge of determining and releasing those reports.
3
Given a president who lies continuously every single time he speaks has appointed the most corrupt and incompetent staff in history who in their right mind would possibly believe any report put out by this administration.
I'm only surprised they didn't just double the number. I mean if everyone knows you lie about everything why not just go all in.
Sorry, not trusting any reports released by this administration.
2
Great news for restaurant workers & minimum wage jobs.
2
I'm not sure it's good for my mental health to read comments on this site. . . I tend to worry about everything. . . so have nice weekend everyone!
1
Frankly not just what type of jobs, but wages have stagnated and health care costs continue to rise. Try a slave market basically and it is the old game that many of the jobs are part time jobs and then the company creates a second part time job. So, alot of it is smoke and mirrors. Two jobs created, but under the hours so no benefits. Sorry Boeing is not making the MAX and sub contractors have been laying off people since their is not need for them so where are those numbers. I know people who recently lost their jobs the figures are cooked. Interesting I will wait and see since the week before the virus Wall Street was flying up and up and up and then the next day crash crash crash. So, lets see with the virus. Airlines are letting people go, I go love the encouragement to take unpaid days off. What do they think people live on. Now the report that corporations are facing cash and with that how do they make debt payments. Gee, I thought the tax cut provided them with that. I can hear it now time for another tax cut and Rand Paul saying how it is win win. No, with the crash the bubble has burst and the problem with people who write these columns they live in a enclosed group and never make it to the real world. Also this interest rate cut will have no impact and yet, Trump shouts need more people seem to forget this guy was bankrupt four times make it five if you include the football league he headed. He has no idea of paying his bills. Jim Trautman
7
What do we consider a reasonable wage ? My married son with a pre-K daughter makes 42 thousand a year with super high deductible insurance. He lives in fairly decent dump, drives a high mileage beater, shops goodwill’s for almost everything. The family can’t put a nickel in the piggy bank. And yes, no drugs and alcohol involved.
I have professionally done his budget, and the checks and debits barely balance!
What do we consider a reasonable wage ?
11
You, like so many others, have it completely backward. Wages reflect the value of your labor. The cost of living reflects supply, desirability and location. Aside from being economic factors, they are unrelated. Therefore, people need to live the lifestyle their job can provide for, not the other way around.
3
Wow. The majority of the commenters seem to be rubbing their hands with glee as they look forward to the job numbers dropping when — not even if, but WHEN — the coronavirus takes a greater toll. You folks are positively wishing for people to die snd others to stay unemployed so that you can enjoy some schadenfreude at Trump’s expense.
Just, wow. Thanks for reminding me why I’ve left “the party of love and acceptance.”
7
So, according to Obama’s fans, the job growth is all a result of his good deeds years ago, but the low wages are all on Trump’s shoulders... yeah, right.
7
I know you’d love me to blame low wages on Obama. But the fact is that the downward pressure on wages has been a trend for about 40 years now. Basically my entire adult working life.
4
It seems progressives can only take satisfaction in U.S. job growth if it only happens under a progressive President. Despite the prognostications of the likes of Paul Krugman, it has been four years now and these job numbers prove the ‘Trump Slump’ was a mirage.
6
I don’t believe a word of it. The Trump machine has been working overtime to project the image of job creation. How many times in the past three years have these numbers been “corrected” to reflect fewer gains than what was claimed. There is no one left in his administration that can be trusted. They’ve all sold out as loyal servants.
5
If this economy has taught us anything, it is that low energy prices are key to sustained growth, specifically due to the shale revolution. We must wean ourselves off fossil fuels without causing a shock to the American pocketbook...I’m old enough to remember what happened to America after the 1973 Arab embargo.
2
It's well documented the Attorney General, Secretary of State, Treasury Secretary, Vice President, along with most members of this administration have lied for the President who demands complete loyalty. Is it a stretch that the Labor Secretary is cooking the books at Trump's request? In fact, most administration officials who have refused to lie for him have been fired or quit. The last few employment reports have not correlated with other economic statistics or what you would expect from a 2% growth economy. Any whistle blowers in the Labor Department?
4
Reporting on jobs numbers is virtually meaningless without more information. While there sees to have been solid jobs numbers for the past 6 months or so, it belies the fact that the actual number of people employed has stagnated since spring of 2019, the number of people employed full time has dropped for 3 months in a row and the difference is being made up in part time employment, and that the recent increases in wages is almost entirely attributed to the increases in minimum wage being implemented in states and localities at three bring of 2020. The idea that the economy was doing well going onto the coronavirus outbreak was largely based on incomplete or misleading information. The media needs to dig deeper into this data instead of just relying on whatever simple data points are being released and cited by administration propagandists
5
Many comments here maintain that job growth means little if the jobs don't pay a living wage with health insurance. However, the two Democratic (or one Democratic and one democratic socialist) candidates who were willing to go against the corporations that prevent real change got no support from the Democratic establishment. The Democratic Party is "supposed" to be the party of the "working man (and woman)." That hasn't been true since LBJ pushed through Medicare and Head Start. Lip service is easy.
3
No real blockbuster, just a couple of months above average (the decade long average is about 220k). Unemployment rate has dropped for a decade and is probably at the bottom of the trend and cannot go much lower. Trump supporters love hyperbole like this article.
2
Wow!! Where do you get your information? Ten dollars an hour, or $7.25 an hour based on the refusal to raise decent wages to workers, does not equate with a good life. Once the unions of the 1950s and 1960s were gutted by Reagan's give all the money to the rich and send jobs overseas, the quality of life became, for most working folk, a nightmare of being trapped in poverty, or near poverty, and not many chances for a better life. No, things are not getting better in the U.S. and won't until the rich are asked to fess up some cash so the bulk of the people at least have a shot at living some of the good life.
8
@Rick
The unions were gutted by their mob bosses and the shoddy work of their members.
Sure... Are these jobs, however, paying living wages? Because I see ads requesting difficult job descriptions, but they'll only pay $14/hour. So, who cares if there are more jobs out there if they can't support a very simple lifestyle?
13
I remain frustrated by the New York Time reporting of "job gains." The real issue is what sort of jobs are being gained? Do they create an upward mobility path or are they essentially dead end minimum wage jobs? As a former US business executive, I think a more honest evaluation of the economy would be to measure the quality of the "new jobs" being created and whether or not the huge economic inequality gap in the US is being reduced, maintained or widened.
9
I think a minimum standard for a life-sustaining—and perhaps family-sustaining—job in the U.S is $50,000, benefits that include health, dental, and vision, three weeks personal time (vacation and sick time), national holidays, and job security free of right to work restrictions. Anything less is precarious and not sustainable or worth counting.
8
Yeah right , $10 an hour jobs Where are the real paying jobs ? I work as Tech in the banking industry and I've been looking for 3 years and haven't come across anything that pays ..
5
I want to know how many new full-time jobs, especially in industry this number includes. I could care less about menial jobs. Many highly educated and capable people are "flipping burgers" and working two other jobs with no benefits at all. Glad Trump is so happy about it, but the workers themselves aren't. Imagine having children at home, and you never see them or get to interact with them or the spouse because you have to run to your second or third job.
I think the job report should have to state what kinds of jobs, the benefits (if any), the permanence and the amount of pay. Otherwise these numbers are just fluff.
9
The bottom line?
Dems and ‘progressives’ are in denial and are hoping for an economic calamity.
10
Wait until all the furlough and outright firings begin when companies are on their heels financially due to COVID-19.
The markets are pre-indicating right now where this is going, and it's not pretty.
7
Awesome. Now Trump has something else he can blame on Obama.
11
I bet this employment number is a fake news mustered by trump, just like everything else going on in Washington since the “ Elected Republicans “ decided to pardon trump’s treason and crimes against the Republic !
6
Google the term “layoffs 2020” Cisco. AT&T. Expedia. U.S. Steel is closing its mill near Detroit, laying off over 1,500 workers, despite President Trump's vow that tariffs would strengthen the steel industry. Wayfair is laying off hundreds.
Thousands of workers in Boeing’s US supply chain are have suffered layoffs and loss of hours. Ford Motor dumped 7,000 workers to the curb in May of last year. I guess they’re so happy to be Wal*Mart greeters now.
These falsely-inflated feel good reports on so-called “jobs” are a fake report to “re-elect the grabber in chief” next November put out by the latest employee from the Dept of Labor, who just got a shiny new job for knowing nothing, but who can gladly serve up the government lie, as the corporate welfare beneficiaries from “tax-relieved companies” continue to issue these “Yay! Yay! Yippie Aye Yay! The middle class is out of our way!” reports.
Or to quote another NY Times article today: How Working-Class Life Is Killing Americans, in Charts:
"Inequality has risen more in the United States — and middle-class incomes have stagnated more severely — than in France, Germany, Japan or elsewhere. Large corporations have increased their market share, and labor unions have shriveled, leaving workers with little bargaining power. Outsourcing has become the norm, which means that executives often see low-wage workers not as colleagues but as expenses."
In other words, we're all dying from excitement about these amazing new jobs!
12
273,000 jobs added before the coronavirus had taken hold.
It will change next month when jobs are lost.
Do the 273,000 jobs created pay a living wage? Doubtful.
13
A job paying the minimum wage is better than no job. What liberals intentionally ignore is that the value of your labor determines the life you will lead, not the other way around.
7
@From Where I Sit
Well bless your heart!
@Jacquie
Ah, yes, for the good ol’ days of the sainted Barack Obama in which every job created on his watch paid a minimum of $90K plus benefits. Sigh...
Great news for Trump and for the country. The fundamentals are strong, the market will recover from coronavirus.
19
It won’t last. Trump has botched the economy and his coronavirus response. As usual, it’s all about him.
48
@Skeptical what fundamentals skeptical? Of course the market will recover- thanks captain obvious- but not because of trump, but in spite of him. Then lets look down the road at a nuclear Iran, a divided Israel, and a large dissatisfied population with no healthcare, bad education, crumbling infrastructure, an unheard of record debt and deficit and then minor stuff like storms, coastal flooding, dying crops and all that climate stuff he denies.
36
@Skeptical The markets always recover eventually, but the jobs report sure hasn't helped their immediate performance. And while the markets will recover regardless of the administration, many of the people infected with Covid-19 will not.
6
And, unlike with the sainted Barack Obama who caused millions to drop OUT of the work force, millions have rejoined under Trump.
4
@EGD
Amen to that!
@EGD
I’m not sure President Obama should be called a saint but he did take one of the worst economy’s this country has ever experienced and turned it around. Additionally, unlike trump, President Obama is not a racist, misogynist, serial cheater and pathological liar. But go ahead and call him a saint if you wish.
1
Is it just me or does it seem like everyone is doing the most exhausting, corporatized, undervalued version of their job? Everyone I know is burnt out, even the people with creative, interesting, fulfilling jobs.
9
Boom! America's job producing engine is in overdrive. Great news if you love America.
3
I would like supporters of President Trump to look at the graphs in this article (provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics) and explain to me how the economy magically got better starting in January 2017 when Mr. Trump took office. Numbers don't lie.
Thank you, President Obama.
6
@jrinsc The Obama recovery was the slowest from a recession we've had since WWII. Yes there was recovery in progress, but Obama himself said that Trump's promises of 3.5% unemployment, and a 3% GDP growth rate were impossible. Well, he was wrong on that. And it got better because of the corporate tax cut from 35% down to 21% which made more hiring possible, especially in black communities because of a slowdown of illegals coming in to take their jobs. So now finally black youth could get jobs in their own neighborhoods with illegals now being severely hampered.
6
Disappointed
All this coronavirus activity will be over By the end of the summer. The stock market will rebound beautifully Just in time for the election. Trump will be reelected and we will have another four years of prosperity.It’s good for everybody in the United States. In fact it’s good for everybody on the globe. Even if you are a Trump hater.
7
How many of those jobs are going to last at least one year? 5? 20?
2
I stopped reading/ believing the data coming from the current syndicate in the WH the first week in office when they started to dismantle the climate change details on EPA websites.
Week one- that was the priority!
Hide publicly available information!
DJT and any one that works for him cannot be trusted to articulate facts/ data.
They have irreparably damaged that trust.
Now we have a global virus situation and he remains incapable of articulating factual information.
If we cannot trust the information about a global virus response why would anyone believe anything about a jobs report that may be favorable to DJT?
6
@Is_the_audit_over_yet Your incapability to understand nor trust Trump and his WINNING and successful policies is your problem, not his or mine.
The market’s reaction to everything reminds me of some people who when they get a slight cold overreact and only wish to crawl into bed, curl up and die. When it passes they expect the world to treat them like they’re some kind of heroic cancer survivor. Insufferable.
2
But, but, are they the right kind of jobs--are the college students making 50K. I remember getting out of college and just being happy to work.
People are working--stop whining--you will be happier.
5
Are you sure Trump didn’t take a sharpie, real or metaphorical, to the jobs data? Look at the 1 million CDC Covid-19 test kits that were issued this week. Yeah sure.
2
@DJ The fact is this new virus is hardly worse than the usual flu common around this time around, and the 24/7 anti-Trump mass media has turned a molehill into a mountain again. Out of 100,000 known infections, so far less 4,000 have succumbed, so that is a 4% mortality rate. Just more grist for the anti-Trump mill.
1
@Jgarbuz
Seasonal flu has a mortality rate of 0.1%. If the Corona virus mortality rate were 4% (and it actually seems closer to 3.4%) that is 40x higher. You see, "facts" do matter and that's where the "grist" comes from.
1
The economy is about to go viral.
Another triumphant month in the Trump economy. Another example of what happens when free-enterprise is allowed "to do its thing" as they used to say.
9
It takes one's breath away how glorious and persistent this Trumpian jobs economy is. Seems the coronavirus will put a brief damper on it; nothing to be done about that in spite of the left media trying to blame Trump for a global pandemic originating in a far away land. In truth, this stretch of ultra low unemployment with wage growth consistently over 50% higher than inflation and new jobs as far as the eye can see should be more than enough to get Trump an enthusiastic reelection if there's any justice in this world.
9
Absolutely incredible given we are entering the tenth year of the recovery. There is no question the Trump tax policy and low energy prices extended it, several years past the typical cyclic downturn of 8 years..
8
@J House
5 years is the typical cycle. The last recession ended in June 2009. We are not entering the tenth year of an expansionary economy; we are closing out the eleventh year and are now six years overdue for a recession. This economy has simply defied gravity. It's such a beautiful thing. Unfortunately this coronavirus looks poised to finally stop this thing momentarily. Not to worry. We have another four years of Trump, and he'll get the economy going again...
1
@J House The “boom” continues only because of a $3.5 trillion dollar handout to the richest Americans marketed as a “middle class tax cut”. Without it we would be in a recession.
Not only has pay lagged for a full decade, but these “new jobs” are mostly minimum wage and as far as “low unemployment” goes, the majority of those unemployed have run out of benefits but are still searching for jobs.
10
My husband was laid off last October and when unemployment runs out there is nothing. Nothing.
4
@Greg Newman
Simply not true that only low paying jobs are the ones being reflected. High paying companies are hiring like gangbusters. Tech companies are expanding in all major metropolitan areas, law firms are hiring like nobody's business, finance jobs all over the place etc.
I'm seeing friends get jobs they wouldn't have dreamed of being qualified for a mere five, six years ago. With wage growth now 50% above inflation for years, wage growth rates at low paying jobs now exceeding growth at high paying jobs, and an unprecedented high percentage of those who look for a job able to find one, this economy is fantastic. That's the reason economic optimism is literally at an all time high in the richest country in the world. If you're not seeing this, I'd suggest looking out your window my friend; the sun is shining and the weather is sweet.
2
@American
Right. For him and many others like me who are in mid career minimum wage for the foreseeable future or maybe forever is nothing to feel thankful for.
The most amazing thing about the continuously glorious US economic numbers from the Trump Administration Department of Labor is that people apparently still trust them.
18
@Tony Probably about as trustworthy as the reported number of coronavirus cases in the country.
5
Equally important but not mentioned is that pay has lagged for many decades. And it moves up more slowly than inflation.
12
Thank you for adding what appears to me to be an important caveat ("broader measure" revealing that "7 percent"). I'm biased as a Sanders supporter, but anyway, it still seems to me to be a "booming" job economy with many people who are working without getting a living wage, benefits, etc. Then there's those who've given up. I'm addressing the underlying misery of many of these jobs, referring in particular to the current NYT piece by David Leonhardt and Stuart A. Thompson. A plug for Sanders: He repeatedly addresses these issues that are important for working people and average citizens. In the midst of this jobs hoopla, it seems like something's really gotta give.
10
Thank you #45 for the jobs report.
I will now ask (for the 12th month in a row), for the details on all those wonderful jobs, such as wages, PTO/Sick Time, health insurance, FT or PT, company participation in 401K, paid vacation. Of course wages/salary are the critical of the list.
I hear those numbers each month and wonder how many of those are second or third jobs? How many are a second job for the second working adult in a household (the other one already has a second job). Quality not quantity matters.
41
@RowanN
RIGHT ON RowanN! One way or another, these jobs are tantamount to FAKE STATISTICS for sure.
Excellent news. An additional cushion that will protect our economy from negative effects of the coronavirus. Thank goodness the market is so high and the job market so strong.
8
The estimated jobs number is not the important number the Labor participation rate is and that has remained at 63.4 % compared with a high of 67.4 %.
The fact is our jobs number is a function of an aging population and that is clearly reflected in our growing deficit and the fact the the largest growth in employment is in the Health Care sector.
By the way our low unemployment rate is consistent with most other industrialized countries who are experiencing the same demographics.
By 2040 the over 65 population will be 20% of the total , up from 15 percent today and 10 percent in 2010.
Very few economists, journalists and of course politicians are talking about this fact.
We need to, we need to ask ourselves where are we going to find the skills we need to grow our economy , in particular health care workers. How are we going to contain the deficit , attend to other priorities we need to invest in with soaring health care costs without impacting Medicare , Social Security .
My thoughts, increase immigration from Asia, Central and Southern America to fill vacant positions. All companies must pay a flat rate of 21% , eliminate all tax breaks for the wealthy , reduce prescription drug prices to European levels.
If we do not diagnose the problem correctly we will not cure the problem.
14
Sorry. There is no data coming out of this administration that I trust or that anyone should be taking as authentic.
Trump clearly thought this would scare the shorts out of the market this morning and was publicly positioned at market open to draw this line in the sand.
Welcome to reality, Trump. Nobody is going long over this weekend.
I suspect 'Infrastructure Week' will be the next thing they throw at the wall to see if it sticks.
11
These jobs reports are fairly worthless as they currently are reported and should be changed to report not all jobs, but the change in growth for full-time jobs that have health and retirement benefits.
We would see a very different side of the economy if all temporary, non-salaried, non-benefits jobs were reported separately from jobs capable of supporting people.
9
You can be sure quacks like Paul Krugman and the rest of the TDS crowd will proclaim an "I told you so" if the economy does drop precipitously due to the Coronavirus/Covid-19 pandemic -- supposed proof Trump's economic boom was a mirage; and Krugman who already wrote the other day "Dow 25,000! as if he was exultant millions of people saw their 401(k)'s drop, just so Krugman could feel vindicated on is the prediction of a market and economic meltdown as soon as Trump was elected. As if Trump is responsible for the virus in the first place. The TDS crowd has it so bad if an asteroid hit just as the Dow reached 35,000 and GDP clocked in at 5% growth rate; they'd blame a sharp downturn on Trump for that too.
Now if it was Obama or any other Democrat, you can be sure the storyline would have been: You can't expect anyone to be all-knowing, and he did a great job under the uncertain circumstances faced with a Black Swan event no one could have predicted.
11
Let's say you are a career staffer in the Commerce Department, nearing retirement but still have about ten years to go. And you are responsible for assembling employment and unemployment data for the monthly reports. And you know the president wants rosy numbers for his re-election campaign, and you have seen what he has done to other career employees who dare cross him. Now what would you do? It's now the case where ANY information coming out of this administration is suspect. Just look at what happened when CDC and NIH and NOAA staffers attempted to put out the truth that disagreed with trump's POV. That's the situation we are in now. I can no longer trust ANYTHING that comes out of from the government.
23
I totally share your understanding of these fake news in the middle of Novel Coronavirus outbreak ! Let us hope the markets will unwind the mother of all fake news factory at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue !
Like many other persons who have commented, I do not believe the numbers. Please ask some of your investigative reporters to audit the job counting process. Limiting immigration and the green card process can create jobs but why such limited wage growth with no change in the low unemployment numbers? Manufacturing is down. Oil is in an extended oversupply. Retail has been destroyed by Tariffs and Amazon. We are so broke we need to refinance our debt. Based on long term assets, we are in a bubble. Why would we believe numbers provided by an administration with a history of lying and a need to beef up its resume for the election? Would the corporate recipients of tax reduction largess provide information that threatens their handouts? Please assign someone to delve into this and tell us the truth.
14
Thank you, Ray!
Yes please NYT won’t you please expose this rot at the heart of our economy? Then maybe I can pay for my subscription again, that you have suspended and I could read your articles about the coronavirus. What do you say? How about some journalistic justice for your less financially blessed, but faithful, (when we can pay) readership.
1
Thank you, President Trump. I say that as a Bernie Sanders supporting democratic socialist. Now for the bad news.
What type of jobs? $12 hour garbage jobs or real jobs with real pay and benefits? Are these jobs being created by mortgaging our future? Meaning interest rate cuts and massive spending at a time of full employment and a robust economy. Then there is the aspect of cutting rules and regulations for corporate America. What are the long term costs regarding climate change and income inequality?
I am not about to be a naysayer and dispute the massive number of jobs being created. To do so would make me as big an ignoramus as republicans who said, "I just don't believe the numbers or the President" when Obama was in office.
No doubt, the jobs are real and that is cause for celebration. But again, at what cost? Small wonder that the under 30 crowd is disengaged and not showing up at the polls---to their own detriment.
7
@Concernicus
Minimum wage jobs constitute a tiny percentage of the work force.
2
The hysteria over the new "it" virus, makes as much sense as the hysteria over CLIMATE CHANGE. They are both nothing burgers.
5
@bob you are joking - right??
1
Some jobs all coal miners and related to the oil industry which will be destroying us sooner. They need to shut down those toxic industries and use wind and solar. This jobs report is nothing to be happy about. Full employment means total air pollution and toxic water for our wells. Look at China they were full employment thanks to our traitor American GOP business men and were forced to wear masks before the virus now. Can’t wait until Mr Biden becomes President he will shut down the deadly coal and oil. Remember Pope Francis said to the coal and oil men you harm the environment you harm humanity. Shame on you.
2
Like to know what is considered a "job", this report is legend in how they manipulate the definition of a "job"... sorry, don't buy it... it will be "adjusted" down in a month.... be transparent about what "job" is
6
@gc
From the BLS website.....
"Who is counted as employed?
People are considered employed if they did any work at all for pay or profit during the survey reference week. This includes all part-time and temporary work, as well as regular full-time, year-round employment."....
https://www.bls.gov/cps/faq.htm#Ques4
Actually, Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the official payroll numbers in 2018 and 2019 were vastly overstated. See the Forbes article below.
Sheesh...have these numbers been fudged?
C'mon Post and Times. Let's get some investigative reporters on this pronto.
Kinda important....
"it's the economy, stupid" actually does resonate with folks, and November is just around the corner.....
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2019/08/23/heres-why-the-prior-jobs-report-numbers-were-wrong-by-over-half-a-million/#6cf4ef581fc8
8
I've never been one to question official government statistics, but these rosy job reports don't pass the smell test. I've no doubt Trump would fudge the numbers if he could, but I don't see how he could. His bullying can only go so far without being exposed.
I am at a loss to understand what is going on here. Tens of millions of Americans living pay check to pay check, and inequality of wealth and income continuing to rise. Why does the economy look so good, then?
5
these job reports are clearly an absolute joke at this point. experts are consistently surprised by them because something is broken or inflated, possibly deliberately by the trump admin. I guess we have to wait for a recession for journos to to back in and determine how these numbers were smudged and put that on the front page. if the job market is so good why is it so hard for practically everyone I know outside of the tech industry to get anything but gig, temp or service industry work? is it more likely that it's just an endless churn of these kind of jobs? if the job market is so great why is income stratification still accelerating and wages do stagnant? if the economy is supposedly good, who is it good for?
4
Those are excellent questions.
You should be a journalist- all of those questions you pose would lead to reportage that I would very much like to read, discuss and pass on to others, you know my other job as reader, besides the one where I better be “monetizing” you or my readership is no use.
These rosy employment numbers seem to be "adjusted" a whole lot before the public gets to see them.
I've been wondering if they "added jobs" are really replacements for a similar number of booners said to be retiring or eligible for retirement each month. The two sets of numbers are similar. Even without that, employment is churning a lot as people move from one job to another for an additional nickel an hour. The old, vacant position remains open while there's a "new hire" elsewhere.
3
@Roy, I would say yes that a majority of these "jobs" are simply filling jobs that Boomers are leaving at an average rate of 10,000 per day. PER DAY. That's about 300,000 jobs being vacated each and every month. So I don't get het up and in rah rah mode when I see that we had 273,000 jobs "created" last month. That means a deficit to me of 27,000 jobs that Boomers left and were not filled by employers, but were possibly consolidated and wiped from the books by forcing more work on less workers remaining in the work force. No big gains, just more cooked numbers by a crooked, lying administration that will say and do anything to try and make Trump the Naked Emperor look good.
3
It’s always like this these days, more work never more pay. Go to a bank branch- 10 teller windows and 2 tellers. And a long line. That means these 2 women are doing the work of 10. I bet they are not earning 5 salaries.
these numbers will be revised downward next month.
5
Statistics are derived from data collected making the numerical percentage ultimately produced only as authentic as the material it’s based on. When it comes to employment, the government’s bases it calculations on those who have filed for and receive Unemployment Insurance benefits. Excluded are the unemployed who are no longer eligible to receive this insurance so are no longer counted as they have effectively dropped out of the job market. Also not considered are other pertinent categories. Employers re-structuring what were full time jobs into part time work. Jobs once classified as permanent employee now held by contract workers and temporary employees.
Bottom line, government employment statistics are deficient in presenting the reality of the employed and unemployed in America.
6
@Rose Gazeeb, that's right. It's as if those people who no longer are eligible to receive unemployment compensation have disappeared off the face of the Earth. They no longer count as human beings, POOF! Trump waved his magic wand and made them all just disappear.
Why was the original projection so low? To make it seem that there is growth? Labor numbers:
2019 200,000
2017 313,000
2016 235,000
2015, 152,544
Explain the analysis work? Simply on average it would be higher and given that it's to early to see the impact of the virus something isn't right with the analysis.
2
It appears the NY Times is incapable of any sort of positive acknowledgment that the Trump Economy is working. Lower taxes, regulatory reform, renegotiated trade deals and a pro-business president in the White House has clearly made the difference. Instead of just reporting the astounding numbers, and remarking on the historical achievement of a 3.5% unemployment rate, Ms. Cohen feels to the need to add:
"The report leaves unanswered questions about the potential economic impact of the widening Coronavirus outbreak".
Well, let's think about this: how can any person or entity possibly know what the impact of the Coronavirus will have on future economic activity?
Ms. Cohen clearly felt the need to add negativity to a story that didn't beg for any. Where I come from, we just refer to this as bias--and there is no surprise in finding it here.
The unemployment rate is at historic lows--and shows no signs of slowing down. We should all be celebrating this outcome--except for those, of course, who are rooting for Trump (and thus our nation) to fail.
6
@Jesse The Conservative
Yep.
The red-in-the-face emotionally-driven responses from this article and so many commenters is astounding. These, from self-proclaimed "educated" voters no less!
So many here, left with nothing but emotion in the face of such positive economic news, throw out made-up-on-the-spot conspiracy theories in a desperate attempt to square these numbers with their baked-in biases of how every single thing Trump does must be bad.
5
@Jesse The Conservative During the Obama administration Trump once said that employment figures were fake. This is perhaps the one thing Trump's said that I agree with. Just a bit of research will reveal to you how the employment numbers are calculated and what they exclude. It's pretty astonishing.
3
@Jesse The Conservative you guys always say the government can't be trusted unless you're in power hmm weird how that works. for everyday people the economy is no better for them than it was under obama and that angst is clearly effecting politics
1
Amazing, we can’t even agree on the numbers? Or, is he news too good? Sad.
1
“Jobs” part time, minimum wage, no benefits, misery.
13
One has to wonder how many are low paying and/or dead end jobs. Hmmm....
4
@deeannef That anti-Obama crowds said the same exact thing when we saw large job gains throughout 2010-2016.
3
@James and yet no one has clarified the information or changed how the data is gathered.
@Virginia, I couldn’t agree more. I’ve been saying the same thing for the last 2 years - you can believe NOTHING that comes from any department run by the Trump Administration.
It is 1984.
8
ABerment - it's not just the Trump administration. Employment numbers exclude quite a lot of factors that would make that number a lot less rosy. It's been that way my entire adult life, and I'm old.
2
@Bob then we need to get "them" to change how the data is gathered. Because this info is meaningless at the moment - I am talking quality of life for the everyday man - not people like Bloomberg or trump.
1
World Bank adjusted U.S. GDP growth prediction for 2020: 1.3%
Employment is a lagging indicator!
2
@Bosox rule, YEP. But the Rah Rah Trumpers ignore information received from actually reliable sources.
1
ADP report was 183,000 private sector jobs in February. Much closer to the forecast (and likely a truer picture).
2
@GP, do ADP's numbers indicate that those 183,000 private sector jobs were in addition to jobs vacated by Boomers during the month, averaging 10,000 a day?
My Company supplies mechanical components to manufacturers in almost every industry, and we've seen 20-30% reductions in sales for the last 6 months... long before the Coronavirus scare. Everyone in manufacturing is down, from food processing machinery to surgical devices. We'll be forced to start laying off staff by the end of this month... a first ever in the 39 year history of the Company.
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@Muad'Dib I'm sorry to hear that. Perhaps your love of Frank Herbert's Dune will get you through the hard times. There's a lot of wisdom in that book that can easily apply to the hardships of any age.
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@Muad'Dib Thank you for that telling tidbit of info - forgot that manufacturing has been dead in the water for 6 months.
1
@Bob Dude, maybe it's just his favorite book!
In this era of Alternate Facts, can we be certain that the Government's 3.5-percent unemployment rate is correct?
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Expect a YUGE bump in jobs, wages and economic growth in the spring (Thank you Chauncey) as factories rush to restock the depleted shelves with more toilet paper and bottled water.
3
Sharpiegate.
7
When will the truth come out about these reported job numbers and the unemployed?
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@A.A.F. The truth about employment numbers and what they exclude has been out there for decades. The problem is, you'll only find it by reading.
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@A.A.F.
It just did. Heck, even the NY Times reported the numbers. What else, exactly, do you want to hear? Will any and all good economic news be met with your same skepticism?
Well, at least the jobs number is healthy. For now.
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@RNS
Thank goodness! The US economy is starting in a very healthy place, and this bodes well for weathering the virus effects.
2
It sounds like Ms. Cohen relied heavily on press releases for her research. For example, "Hiring was hearty in education, social assistance and health care;" education is generally funded by local governments, but her example here is Learning Resources, who have a whopping 10 job opportunities. What exactly is "social assistance" and "health care," then? And then you have the frighteningly cynical statement from Screaming Circuits that a pandemic is good for American business, because those low-wage jobs in China might be shipped back to the U.S. temporarily, until the Chinese workers are well enough to get back on the assembly line.
Is that our future: determine what's in it for us when we have epidemics and global warming disasters? The answer to the Devo question, "Are we not men?" seems to be, "No, we're scavangers and parasites."
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The good news is that the US added 273,000 jobs in February.
The bad news is that nobody will actually be performing them if the coronavirus isn't checked.
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How is it possible that the "experts" are off by some 110,000 jobs? That's a huge difference, and makes me think that there is a lot of political pressure on the labor department to supply rosy numbers. Who validates the numbers coming out of that agency, because it has Trump's smell all over it.
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And wages are still stagnant.
The median 401K maintained by people age 65 and over only has about $65K in it. That’s not even enough money to cover a full year in the average assisted living facility. There are currently over 50 million people 65 or older in this country. That means more than 25 million people are substantially short of retirement savings. They literally cannot afford to retire. 25 million elderly people are already doomed, economically speaking. The burden of their care then falls onto the shoulders of their family members who are probably not much better off than they are. If each of those 25 million people has to rely on just 2 people, now you’ve got 75 million people in some pretty desperate economic circumstances. That’s 23% of the US population. Y’all... that’s catastrophic. Like, society destabilization type catastrophe.
But what are we supposed to do? Not like we can stage a revolution. Wealthy people don’t care about protests in the streets. If traffic is jammed on the highway they just take a private helicopter to wherever they need to go. They live in their own secluded communities that are more heavily guarded than military armories. They might as well live on a different planet.
So what do we do? Not like we can realistically get everyone to vote for politicians who will help. There are just too many conflicting interests. I kinda feel really hopeless.
Anyway, vote blue no matter who, 2020. Might not save us, but better than Trump.
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@Austin Ouellette
I do believe the report said that wages increased. Vote blue for a return to the lackluster economy of Obama.
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@M
Vote blue causes those increases were do to blue states increasing minimum wage to a more livable wage.
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@Austin Ouellette If $650K is the average 401 then there must be a lot of 401s with a lot more, because mine is a third of that. I guess I should have started working before I was 45!
The results show that this administration’s policies and stewardship of the economy is top-notch. The impact of the Coronavirus is natural disaster and is not indicative of the Trump team’s failings.
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Not at all true.
Go back and look at the charts. Unemployment began falling rapidly under Obama (thanks, Sir!). Not sure where the information about wages increasing. Minimum wage hasn’t increased. Perhaps executives salaries are rising?
Also, had Trump taken the pandemic health crisis seriously, rather than as a “hoax,” and had kept the scientists, we might have had a much better chance!
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@Jon Right, because everything we need to know about the economy is in the jobs numbers.
@Jon
It demonstrates that Trump's economic policies are working.
How can you tell? By the level of denial in these comments. NYT readers are at the point where they are dismissing anything that isn't negative. It's like their own little negativity pandemic.
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I'm always skeptical when I see such a large deviation between the analysts/experts' expectations and the "official" report. These sizable deviations seem to happen a lot.
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I cannot believe that these are actual jobs. Health insurance, vacation, sick leave, holidays, maternity leave. Housing, food and education.
I do not think that this number has ever reflected real employment.
Why do we have 70,000 opioid deaths every year, 20 veteran suicides every day, 2.5 million incarcerated, 12000 murders by gun, 20000 suicides by gun (how many other murders and suicides by other means) 3million burglaries every year, 1000 people killed by the police every year, 30000 homeless in Los Angeles alone.
This is not a happy healthy fully employed society. Not 3.5%. Not even close.
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@HT It seems that for a lot of Americans, the only things that matter are 1) rosy job numbers, 2) the DOW, 3) how much is in their 401.
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That's a lot of Uber drivers, I admit. With people increasingly afraid to go out and mingle in public there are ample opportunities for delivery services until, of course, the shelves go empty. My lobby is filled daily with Amazon Prime packages. Seriously, how many of these are real jobs and how many are dead-end gig employment? And if you've got a job or don't need one, who cares?
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@sunnyshel If you're an Uber driver, you own or lease your own car, and have a smartphone, which is a testament to the extraordinary wealth and prosperity this country offers even at the lowest and most uncertain rungs of employment.
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@mfh33 Seriously? Extraordinary wealth and prosperity...??? That's all he has and it isn't even his. You said it: leased. Everything he has is essentially borrowed and can be retaken. What the person you describe owns is debt, nothing more. The older he gets the less he'll have.
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@mfh33 I have a flip phone. I must be extraordinarily poor.
This is good news for today, tomorrow could be different. Posting these figures really doesn't help those still looking for work and not finding it. Putting faith in the economy is like putting faith in tea leaves. What was great one day might be a disaster the next. That's just the way it is. Be prepared for the worst and don't expect others to help you out. Your mothers should have taught you this at an early age. With the trump administration, that should be obvious. Consumerism drives the American economy, not savings. When it heads south, it takes so many unprepared people with it. We saw that 12 years ago and still so many never learn.
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Really? Yesterday I read that the following companies will be closing many of their stores: Kohl's, Target, Walmart, Macy's; not to mention some restaurant chains. Of course that does change the percentages. The picture is far from pretty.
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Go to a local mall or downtown shopping area near you. Retailers are shutting up shop at an unprecedented pace — taking local service jobs with them into the grave.
We need to open our eyes and ignore Trump administration lies.
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@Sari
You don't think closing stores has anything to do with e-commerce?
1
Pardon my ignorance, but what is the piece of paper that signifies to the government that a company has filled a job? My assumption would be the W-4. If in February, I got a full time job, then get another part time job - then my assumption would be that I show up as two jobs on the report. Is that correct? How do we find out the number of Americans working second or third jobs? I work in retail management. For six of the eighteen people on our team, we are their second job. And they’re not just doing it for the discount on clothes, they need the extra salary.
This week, our company told us - no new hires.
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@JCAZ First, Trump is so distrustful with all his lies it is hard to believe anything he says or his administration says. Trust is the most important quality a leader must have to lead well, especially in a crisis.
Second , when anytime something does not look good for him, he blames others and NEVER takes any responsibility for his part.
Third, he disrespects scientists, professors, professionals and anyone who is an expert in anything. He will not listen to them and then blames them when things go wrong.
He is more dangerous to our country than any outside enemy because he does not have the interest and safety of all the American people, only his selected loyalists .
There ya have it.
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The bottom line today is that the 10-year Treasury rate dipped down to 0.7 percent, well below the lowest of the 2008-09, when we were all shocked to see it below 2. One never can tell, but it seems the big money expects a swift change in global economic direction.
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@Mford When I was a young man I remember CDs paying 10%. I was more interested in goofing off than working, so it didn't impact me. But now that I've got a bit of money that 10% would be awesome. I could go back to goofing off instead of working until I drop.
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@Mford very true.
Just did a quick peruse of when Obama was in office, every time there was a tick in these reports it was three cheers for the pres. Trump has been hitting the ball out of the park with the economy and what? He is not mentioned once in the story and in the comments totally vilified. Makes one wonder.
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@TED338 if the economy is so good then why demand more interest rate cuts? candidate Trump said that the unemployment rate stats were fudged. That it was more like 40%.
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@TED338
Hitting the ball out of the park on the economy exactly how? Job creation under Trump's first 36 mos in office lags that of Obama's last 36 months in office - by 1.5M jobs. If I recall correctly, Trump promised 25M new jobs on his watch (not to mention GDP growth of 4...maybe 5 or 6%). So I can take it on DJT's word that he'll be creating some 20M+ new jobs within the next year?
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@TED338 , I challenge you to produce those reports of three cheers for Obama on the economy. I bet you cannot produce them. Second, the growth rate was 2.1% during the 4th quarter of 2019 which was a rate which Trump and others criticized Obama. Trump promised 4% or more after the 2017 tax reform bill was passed. Instead we got $1 trillion deficits as far as we can see. Makes one wonder
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Trump is running the country like an autocrat and he wont accept deviations in communications from the general economic outlook he presents to the nation. Can we really trust these numbers or have they been cooked ?
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@Saints Fan The jobs numbers are always cooked, going back to at least Clinton.
In this election year, it would be wise to take any economic statistic issued by the notorious prevaricating Trump administration with all the salt in the credibility doubting shaker.
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There are, as usual, complaints and challenges to the numbers. Part time. Low skill. Etc.
The range of jobs actually looks pretty good, wages are up a bit more than in the past (although still trail the top 1% and the cash coffers of corporations) and the average hours on job is up a bit.
The nature of these numbers has been pretty much the same for decades, and I am amazed on how Trump still claims absolute credit for only continuing what President Obama had done for 6 years ... although not as well. And then we'll see the next two or three months for a taste of reality, although of course those losses won't be HIS fault.
You can read the whole report here:
https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm
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@jhanzel Any downturn will undoubtedly be blamed on Obama first; Biden and Sanders second; and Hillary third. Count on it!
@jhanzel
Already falsely blaming on Obama!!!
https://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2020/03/05/us/politics/ap-us-virus-outbreak-trump-fact-check.html?searchResultPosition=1
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@jhanzel
There was a capital strike while the sainted Barack Obama was telling job makers ‘you didn’t build that.’
Trump allowed the economy to fly.
So glad the Fed just cut interest rates. (that was meant to be sarcastic).
Coronavirus will contract the economy if people are afraid to travel, afraid to go out to eat, etc. Cutting interest rates will do nothing to get people going out as we are used to doing.
On the other hand, if there is a real recession, where business lacks the resources to expand to meet consumer demand, the lowering the prime lending rate can encourage economic growth. But sorry, in Powell Trump has found another Barr, a spineless sycophant, and so interest rates, already very low, have been further cut, and so this option of fighting an actual recession has been wasted just to feed the ego of Crazy Uncle Donald.
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The raw number is potentially misleading because it is merely the "sample size". What the American Public would like to see is a "frequency distribution" showing how many jobs are in various sectors of the economy: manufacturing, health services, leisure services, food, hotels, etc. either as a graph or table. That's the basic one but you can do others.
Like a distribution showing the number of jobs within given salary ranges. The number of jobs in different regions of the country. The number of jobs that come with varying levels of health coverage and other "benefits".
Sample size? Not much information.
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I guess those jobs went to undereducated Amazon slaves or McDonalds.
I am a veteran who speaks four languages and a gifted writer, public relations professional whose sales talents are extraordinary and above the average. A stellar performer. Yet I can’t get out of substitute teaching and get a job worthy of my experience.
If anyone out there is seeking a gifted human being with a moral compass to boot Facebook message me. I sure would love to secure my berth in this supposed economic bonanza.
I look around me, in one of the richest towns in America and most folks either print their money and just take lunch for fantastic paychecks or they struggle like me to make ends meet.
Message in a bottle. SOS!
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@René Pedraza Del Prado
Well, respectfully, a degree in PR isn’t exactly a door opener.
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@René Pedraza Del Prado A LinkedIn profile may be a place to start. You don't even have one there. As an employer, that's the first place I'd be looking for talent.
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@René Pedraza Del Prado I agree with others that LinkedIn is a good place to start. Even as junior level talent, I get daily messages from recruiters, which landed me my current job. Buying the Premium version is even better for visibility.
2
I can't help but think most of the employment figures are based upon part-time, low wage, "gig" economy jobs. Yes, I do not doubt there is plenty of work for the population in our country but how much of that work is able to afford us the prosperity of the American Dream.
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@Erebus not everyone can be a millionaire. Not everyone WANTS to be a millionaire. Please don't disparage those working class people expanding their freedoms and enjoying their lives in the 'gig' economy. Your ideals and bonds are not theirs.
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@Wally Greenwell Whilst I might agree with your sentiment that "not everyone wants to be a millionaire", I would contend that most people want to be financially stable and not have to worry about a large unexpected bill, be it a medical emergency, a large repair on a car or replacing a furnace.
I also don't think Erebus was being disparaging, I think they were pointing out that for many the only option is a low paid job e.g. logistics fulfilment, often supplemented with something in the 'gig economy', neither of which may provide the security of healthcare, or paid sick time.
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@Wally Greenwell Erebus was not being disparaging. I challenge you to ask the next gig worker you interact with if they’re “enjoying their lives”. Flexible schedules are great but not at the expense of living wages (many make below minimum wage as 1099s) and benefits.
13
Seems really, almost "too good to be true"--inthis age where disinformation is common. But I wonder about the 42,000new construction jobs you report. How many of them came about in order to repair the damage from tornadoes, floods, and hurricanes? How much of that construction is rebuilding what was lost by our bizarre climate?
We hope jobs will continue to grow, but not at the expense of bad things happening in climate and health.
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When jobs are created in higher ed, then the government will have achieved something.
2
@Bonita I'm with you there, Bonita. Sadly, the number of adjuncts is only increasing, while tenured positions shrink, particularly in the arts and humanities. STEM is the one growth area. Ironically, in a recent poll of CEO from the Fortune 400, what CEOs seek are those who can think creatively and work with others. Not exactly the profile of a STEM geek.
1
Wow, simply amazing. We can all agree that 273,000 more residents of U.S. finding jobs in February with an unemployment rate at 3.5%, is much more euphoric than close to 100,000 people out of a population of over 7,000,000,000 people on our planet infected with Coronavirus (CoV) with 3.4% fatality rate. The pandemic of panic, fear mongering and the hype of the CoV as I have been repeatedly saying is what is causing an unprecedented level of anxiety and paranoia simply because of a lack of perspective of how competent an individual's immune system is and how much personal care is taken to avoid infections not just of CoV but all other deadly infectious agents that take down 1000s of people every day and some due to self inflicted harm like smoking which injures lungs, organs critical for breathing.
We all should be aware that we will not be living forever and that realization can always set a person free from fear of death. The goal should always be to live life not just caring for others but for oneself. Knowledge is power and it has the power to chase fear away. Two months ago when CoV struck out of the blue to a city of 11 million, 1000s of miles away from US, we were shocked but not panicking, as the deadly highly contagious virus made its way into the US, it has hit US and caused panic and overreaction. While preparation and over preparation is fully justified, understanding risk and how to avoid it is also important to calm ones nerves. I am not panicking for myself.
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I can’t wait to hear your comments in December.
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@Wise12 Please do. Why December are you not waiting to hear by election time as a lot of the fear mongering partisan crowd would like to. That said on a more serious note, you are at least optimistic that you will be around then. I am sure that you will be around and if not it will not have anything to do with Corona virus. Thats because I know a little bit more about viruses than almost the rest of the world. I know the risk of Corona coming close me and it is miniscule compared to my small fuel efficient car being hit by a bad driver in a hurry driving a gas guzzler or worse still an 18 wheeler who crush me into a chutney (pulp)
I live my life like every day is my last day and just as I prepare to live well as long as I live, I always stay prepared for that day when it is time to say good bye.
3
@Girish Kotwal You live your life as if every day is your last? So, I'm assuming you call in sick everyday?
273,000 new jobs? Where at Walmart, Home Depot and McDonald's? I'm sorry, but I don't believe these government released numbers. Major companies are laying off people with full time positions right and left. Most states have made trying to get unemployment almost impossible. So on a spreadsheet, all is rosey and great in America. I think a dose of reality is coming quickly.
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@Robert
And what exactly is wrong with those jobs types of jobs? I don't see any of the layoffs you are talking about in "major companies". In fact I see them looking for new hires and expanding in my industry (white collar).
9
@Skeptical Interesting skeptical, Subway in CT laid off 2000 workers. As far as the others, yes they are jobs but without healthcare or any kind of permanency. They might feed you fr a week or a month but try living until 70 with those jobs. I don't know what your industry is, perhaps share as right now its simply anecdotal.
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@Robert Not everyone starts as a CEO making six figures.
5
Somehow the overarching message just doesn't ring true. I believe the numbers but what do they represent? How many are unemployed but no longer seeking unemployment. Are these full time, permanent jobs with health benefits and a pension plan. How many of these individuals are working two or three jobs to make ends meet. What I am hearing, over and over, is that these are not high quality jobs with security, wages or benefits that make for a decent social or economic status. The gig economy is uncertain and exhausting. And finally, if you cannot find skilled workers, why would that be? Are we not doing a good enough job of educating our citizenry? Are we investing enough in education? Do we have high quality trade schools focused on growth industries? Those are rhetorical questions. A huge swath of our collective community is being ignored, not invested in and not cared for.
58
With Trump as our President, it is hard to believe these numbers are accurate. I wonder who is controlling the outcome and how they determine who is a full-time worker.
84
The March Jobs Report will be the real test of the economy and employment. By then we should see close to the full impact of the coronavirus.
17
At this point, I can't help but be skeptical. Trump has shown that he is, somehow, able to get people who control these things to sell their souls and lie to the country for him, and considering his lies about the Coronavirus and his overt fear that it will harm the economy which weakens his chances of re-election, I find it very reasonable to consider that he has been bending arms behind the scenes to lie to us about economic indicators. I don't believe anything that comes from the Trump Administration any longer. He just lies too much and coerces and threatens to many to do his bidding.
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@Virginia
There's so much the employment figures don't say.
How many of these hires were what kind of jobs?
What was the hourly rate? Gig, part-time, benefits or none?
Unemployment numbers don't reflect the vast number of people who have just given up, as so many of the jobs pay poorly, have long commutes to get to them, etc.
Let' see what next month's figures are, now that the coronavirus is hitting the country hard.
20
@Virginia, please don't fall for that line of reasoning. We haven't been given any reason or evidence not to trust the eggheads at the Dept of Labor to crunch their numbers every month. Their methodology is public knowledge; the results are always to be taken with a grain of salt among a thousand other economic indicators.
2
@EB ~
Read the report:
https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm
Look, I am not defending Trump, and Obama got the same accusations, but the BLS is mostly hard working bureaucrats who have been there for years and are basically non-political in how they gather and report numbers.
3
Employment is a lagging indicator. Stock market is a leading indicator. Therefore the employment figure is not telling us about the effect of coronavirus outbreak.
85
@Yeah The stock market can also be irrational. When Tesla was given a market cap larger than boeing and WeWork was going to come in at $50B, the market is not always accurate.
7
@brian gasser Tesla is a disruptor, it is a company that has been at the bleeding edge of automotive and other transportation tech. It is the future, Boeing is a company that has to be subsidized with government contracts to stay alive - big difference .
3