The U.S. Jobs Report was released this morning by the Department of Labor and the news was good. The United States added some 372,000 jobs this past month, and unemployment stands at 3.6 percent. This means that the country, in the past 18 months, has now recovered all the jobs lost since the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.
U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh reported that jobs were added across all economic sectors, with special importance placed on the manufacturing sector, distribution, and the human services sector of childcare. Walsh called out the growth in jobs in childcare saying “Growth in the childcare sector is so important; we need these jobs to come back for people to be able to get back to work knowing their children are cared for.”
The country’s unemployment percentage is at its lowest rate since the 1970’s. In fact, there are two job openings for every unemployed person in the U.S. right now. The only sector that has not kept up is the local public sector, where hiring has lagged slightly behind. This sector includes local government, teachers, firefighters, and public safety.
The news runs counter to the recent coverage by news media that the economy might be tipping into a recession, with economists pointing out that it indicates the resiliency of theU.S. economy. It is also possible, say those who chart public perceptions, that other news is simply weighing on the American public, who are exhausted after two years of unrelenting stress.
This includes the overwhelming news of gun violence, the Jan. 6 attempted coup on our democracy, and the recent Supreme Court decision stripping women’s rights, reinforcing more gun rights, and limiting the government’s ability to regulate so important to this world as regulating greenhouse emissions to slow climate change.
The weight of all those things needs to be placed squarely on the shoulders of those who will not vote.