598,000 jobs lost last month, 3.6 million since recession began.
598,000 jobs lost last month, 3.6 million since recession began.
The Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 598,000 jobs were lost last month, “far worse than the 525,000 economists expected.” The unemployment rate rose to 7.6 percent. The Wall Street Journal notes that the U.S. economy has lost 3.6 million jobs since the recession officially began in Dec. 2007:
Half of those losses occurred in the last three months alone, and the stepped-up pace of layoffs in recent months suggests no end in sight to the economic downturn.
The report, which included another sharp rise in the unemployment rate to a 16-year high, will likely up the heat on U.S. lawmakers to enact a large fiscal stimulus package.
January was a brutal month for layoffs, “as major companies ranging from Microsoft, Boeing and Caterpillar to Home Depot and Starbucks all announced substantial job cuts.”
Topic Cloud
ArchivesBlog Roll
Q: At what point does this officially becomes another Great Depression?
Even my own work hours have been cut back due to not enough people are not coming in to the Doctor.
February 6th, 2009 at 9:22 amWhy is is that the first remedy to a slow down in profits- and remember most of these firms are not actually losing money yet, just bringing in lower profits- is always layoffs? You hardly ever hear that the executives are going to take a pay/bonus cut in order to keep the company and it’s workers working.
February 6th, 2009 at 9:24 am3.6 million is 1% of our entire population. Anybody know what percentage it is of our “working” population?
Son & daughter-in-law moved in with us after his lay off in December. Nice Christmas present it was for them.
Obama needs to forcefully & repeatedly take his argument for the stimulus bill to the people who are living in this nightmare economy, they get it. The Senate & House Repubs apparently don’t care enough about matters outside the beltway to even try to “get” how dire all this really is. It’s some kind of effing game to them.
Not a game to us.
February 6th, 2009 at 9:25 amQ: At what point does this officially becomes another Great Depression?
When unemployment reaches 25%, next month or so…that should do it…It hit 30% in 1932…
February 6th, 2009 at 9:25 amWell Uncle, I’M feelin’ pretty depressed! And I can’t even complain, I have coffee in my hand.
February 6th, 2009 at 9:28 amconni;
February 6th, 2009 at 9:29 amdon’t spill your coffee, you may need it to stay warm if you’re in a chilly climate like me.
Hey here’s a crazy idea. Why don’t we pump a lot of money into infrastructure spending which would require construction firms to lease more catepillar equipment and help stimulate the economy.
February 6th, 2009 at 9:32 amIt’s time for Mr. Obama to go on the offensive. Above all, he must not shy away from pointing out that those who stand in the way of his plan, in the name of a discredited economic philosophy, are putting the nation’s future at risk. The American economy is on the edge of catastrophe, and much of the Republican Party is trying to push it over that edge.
February 6th, 2009 at 9:33 am-Paul Krugman / NYT / 2-6-09
598,000 jobs lost and the Republics and their spokesman, unpatriotic Rush Limbaugh, want this trend to continue and that is why they are blocking Obama’s job stimulus plan.
Congressional Republics and Limbaugh have jobs so they can’t relate.
February 6th, 2009 at 9:38 amThose job losses? That’s just your tax breaks at work friends, stimulating the economy in the old trickle down process. How’s that working out you say? More tax cuts? How fcking stupid are these people?
Don’t ever understimate the hate that Republicans have for all things progressive, liberal, or even middle of the road. The Repugnant Taliban are our enemies.
February 6th, 2009 at 9:40 amI am self-employed in a tiny business in a small college town. My business is very slow right now and when I speak to the other business owners along the Main Street, they tell me that their business is slow, even the hairdresser’s business is slow. Fortunately, I have some “bridge” money stashed that is sustaining me. Others, don’t have this extra “bridge” money and I’m afraid they won’t make it through this recession.
February 6th, 2009 at 9:43 am3.6 million jobs lost.
Wait. Let’s obstruct the stimulus proposal because we need to take our time to make sure these corporations that are laying off employees can get an extra tax break.
Because, nothing says surplus like tax incentives for the last 8 years.
/snark off
Mucking foronic Republicans!
February 6th, 2009 at 9:46 amIf we weren’t Democrats, we could play the patriotism card, to wit:
America is in a dire emergency. The Democrats have a mandate from the voters to fix the economy the Repubs broke. The country is fighting for its life. If the Democrats fail, America fails.
Therefore, to oppose the stimulus plan is treason. Obama should start detaining Republicans who criticize the bill.
Just enjoying a fantasy here. It’s irritating we can’t do what the other side does.
February 6th, 2009 at 9:46 amWe need help here in Ohio, guess John Boehner hates Ohio, he’s against the stimulus. Get this bill passed. Real Americans who live outside the beltway are hurting. give them h-ll President Obama!
February 6th, 2009 at 9:58 amTime to start laying off US Senators…
At $169,000 each, we’d save a millions each year!
And why not lay them off – they aren’t exactly contributing to anything right now.
February 6th, 2009 at 10:00 amRe #7: That plan will never work. A much better idea is to give tax breaks to 3.6 million unemployed people when they buy a new car or house. Can’t you see the logic in that?
February 6th, 2009 at 10:01 amLosing four million jobs…a fairly good assessment of Republican economic policy. Yes? Who wouldn’t want more of Bush like Republican economics? Who would want more Republican economics…Republican criminals? Yes!
February 6th, 2009 at 10:05 amOOOOPS…..don’t forget the revisement of the figures from last month at +53,000…which makes the real number more like 650,000
February 6th, 2009 at 10:06 amRe #16: No logic visible. “Buy a new car or house” with what? The salary that’s no longer there, the loan that’s no longer available, the savings now spent on absolute necessities like food?
You don’t make sense. Trying to derail this thread? After reading comments here since BO’s election geewhiz that can’t be the case…
February 6th, 2009 at 10:11 amfergus Says:
A much better idea is to give tax breaks to 3.6 million unemployed people when they buy a new car or house. Can’t you see the logic in that?
—————————————————————
Bingo!
February 6th, 2009 at 10:11 amAnd Yet…says;
Simmer down, I think fergus was just being snarky this morn.
February 6th, 2009 at 11:12 amDr. Matt Hussein;
You left out Blush Limpdick’s phoney soldiers
February 6th, 2009 at 11:13 amDon’t forget to add in that in the last 8 years, job creation has NOT KEPT PACE WITH THE GROWTH IN THE POPULATION LOOKING FOR WORK. So it’s not just 3.6 million, but many more.
February 6th, 2009 at 11:17 amI’m waiting for Daryll or one of his friends to show up and tell us that this just means that there are 600,000 more lazy people this month than there were last month.
February 6th, 2009 at 11:25 amTo tie into #2 conniptionfit Says:
One thing I don’t understand is why the CEOs balk at Obama’s limit of 1/2 million on pay.
They can get stock. If they truly believe that they can turn the company around, they are in a prime example to get stock now at firesale prices which will be worth a huge fortune in the future.
Or maybe they don’t believe the drivel they feed to the masses to get them to buy their stock ????
February 6th, 2009 at 11:28 amThis reminds me of nothing so much as the ‘Clinton’ recession at the beginning of Bush’s term.
For the entirety of Bush’s term, we waited while the economy lost and created jobs. It lost 4 million jobs in the first few years of his term…then gradually added more.
In January of 2005, with the U.S. economy’s creation of a scant few hundred thousand jobs, Bush crossed the finish line just barely ahead of Herbert Hoover, and managed to NOT become the first President to end a term with job losses in the NEGATIVE column. By 100,000 jobs or so. With plenty of caveats on that job ‘creation’.
Worst President EVER status will not be in danger any time soon. Or within my lifetime.
February 6th, 2009 at 11:46 amThe other thing that gets glossed over is the upward adjustments to prior reporting periods. I was looking for the details on this but they were not reported. While the actual reported number for January was 598,000 jobs lost I heard on TV that there was a combined adjustment of prior months of 311,000. That means that the actual losses reported today is 909,000. That should be the headline number.
February 6th, 2009 at 12:48 pmThe thing Obama can’t seem to even imagine is that for conservatives, it’s mission accomplished. Just because they SAY they care about people in the middle and bottom doesn’t mean they actually do. No different than when you tell your mother in law her corn pudding is delicious even though you really want to toss it in the garbage.
February 6th, 2009 at 1:02 pmI thought I’d pass this along before we are all living in our cars where there will be no Internet access:
http://jackrabbitcafe.blogspot.com/2009/02/from-new-york-times.html
February 6th, 2009 at 1:40 pmralph the wonder llama Says:
I’m waiting for Daryll or one of his friends to show up and tell us that this just means that there are 600,000 more lazy people this month than there were last month.
The talking point’s Oh, those people just quit their jobs because Obama’s going to give them money through welfare…LOL…oh the utter stupidity…
February 6th, 2009 at 2:16 pmCalifornia is saying they don’t have the money for welfare payments. They are closing DMV’s because they cannot afford to pay all their workers. Ain’t trickle-down great?
February 6th, 2009 at 10:35 pmMy son has to move back home because he can’t find another job.
I hate what this country has become. My children are paying for it…
February 7th, 2009 at 2:17 amBush is behind the job-loss problems.
“GEORGE W. BUSH IS THE WORST PRESIDENT IN U.S. HISTORY” BLOG OF ANDREW YU-JEN WANG
ONLINE ANTI-BUSH SCHOLASTIC RESEARCH: LISTING OF MAJOR ISSUES
http://andrewyu-jenwang.blogspot.com/2008/10/bush-is-worst-president-in-american.html
February 8th, 2009 at 12:36 amThe economy has been cursed by Bush.
“GEORGE W. BUSH IS THE WORST PRESIDENT IN U.S. HISTORY” BLOG OF ANDREW YU-JEN WANG
ONLINE ANTI-BUSH SCHOLASTIC RESEARCH: LISTING OF MAJOR ISSUES
http://andrewyu-jenwang.blogspot.com/2008/10/bush-is-worst-president-in-american.html
February 8th, 2009 at 12:38 amThe talking point’s Oh, those people just quit their jobs because Obama’s going to give them money through welfare…LOL…oh the utter stupid
February 8th, 2009 at 7:05 am