The Good News and the Bad News

Warning: Undefined array key 0 in /home/dollarsandsense/www/www/wp-content/themes/dollarsandsensenew/single-article.php on line 235

Employment at the tippy-top is looking good for Black people in the United States, as Barack Obama ascends to the presidency and Roland Burris (finally) settles into Obama’s former U.S. Senate seat (net job increase: +1). The job picture for the rest of Black America? Not so good.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a sharp decline in nonfarm payroll employment in December and an increase in the general unemployment rate from 6.8% to 7.2%. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate for Black men over the age of 20 rose from 12.1% to 13.4%. The official jobless rate for Black youth (ages 16 to 19) was even bleaker; it rose from 32.2% to 33.7% in the same period, while the unemployment rate for white youth increased from 18.4% to 18.7%. Find more grim news at the Bureau’s website.

 

Did you find this article useful? Please consider supporting our work by donating or subscribing.