It is Labor Day in the U.S. In the past, Labor Day was a celebration of working men and women. On Labor Day 2020, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and economic havoc, the percentage of people actually employed in the U.S. has recently hit an all-time low.
In August 2020 (the last full set of data) the BLS says the employment-population ratio stood at 56.5%. For comparison, the rate stood at 59.8% in December 2016, before Trumpie and his fellow travelers started their reign. That means that 45.4% of the civilian noninstitutional population – did NOT have a job.
This number is an improvement from the historically low 51.6% we saw in April 2020 – there are still over 7 million people not working.
24/7 Wall St. reviewed unemployment at the metropolitan area level for USA Today to identify the cities with the worst unemployment problem. It is not a big surprise that Michigan has been hard hit. They ranked 4 Michigan metro areas in their list of areas most impacted by the COVID-19 layoffs.
| Battle Creek | Flint | Detroit metro | Muskegon | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Impact | 33 | 21 | 12 | 11 |
| Unemployment rate | 15.1% | 16.6% | 17.7% | 17.8% |
| YTD change | -8.7% | -8.2% | -19.0% | -8.0% |
| COVID cases | 699 | 813 | 11,83 | 629 |
| Poverty rate | 18% | 18.8% | 14.3% | 15.8% |
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Real unemployment at the height of the 2020 recession (so far) has reached levels not seen since the Great Depression. In April 2020, the real unemployment rate, including discouraged, marginally attached, and part-time, was 22.8%. The unemployment rate during the Great Depression surpassed 25% from March 1933 to June 1933.
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Ralph Bach has been in IT long enough to know better and has blogged from his Bach Seat about IT, careers, and anything else that catches his attention since 2005. You can follow him on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter. Email the Bach Seat here.