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135 comments on DrumBeat: July 2, 2009

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Leanan on July 2, 2009 - 9:02am Permalink | Subthread | Comments top

The jobs report was worse than expected:

Job market takes turn for worse

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The battered U.S. labor market took a step backwards last month as employers trimmed more jobs from their payrolls in June, according to a government report Thursday.

There was a net loss of 467,000 jobs in June, compared with a revised loss of 322,000 jobs in May. This was the first time in four months that the number of jobs lost rose from the prior month.

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Gail the Actuary on July 2, 2009 - 9:58am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

From the same report:

The job losses don't tell the full picture of the pain the labor market either. The average hourly work week fell to 33 hours from 33.1 hours in May, a record low in readings that go back to 1964. Average hourly wages were unchanged, so the shorter week shaved $1.85, or 0.3%, off of the average weekly paycheck.

The so-called underemployment rate, which counts those who are working part-time jobs because they couldn't find a full-time position as well as discouraged job seekers who have stopped looking for work, rose to a record high 16.5%.

It seems like many people are being affected at least a little. Even if they have a job, they are earning less.

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Leanan on July 2, 2009 - 10:22am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

Government jobs have long been considered "safe" jobs. The ones that kept the economy going during recessions, though they paid less in good times. But even they aren't unaffected. States like NY and Hawaii have forced 3 unpaid furlough days a month - equivalent to a 14% pay cut. In Hawaii's case, for two years.

The SacBee had an interview with a lawyer who had planned a career working for state. He ended up leaving for private industry, because the pay was 50% higher, and he needed to pay off his student loans. He's now working for his former union, suing the state to prevent furloughs.

Pennsylvania has no budget yet, and their state workers will receive partial payments the next couple of weeks, then not be paid at all if the budget isn't settled.

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dwcal on July 2, 2009 - 10:43am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

California has no budget either, and we're set to start issuing IOUs today as the state runs out of cash.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-california-budget2-2009jul02,0,4...

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Earthworm Jim on July 2, 2009 - 1:25pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

"States like NY and Hawaii have forced 3 unpaid furlough days a month"

Not so in the case of New York. We haven't had any furlough days for state employees.

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Leanan on July 2, 2009 - 1:28pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

Sorry, I mean California, not NY.

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Nanigoat on July 2, 2009 - 3:11pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

Also in WI, at least for UW State employees. so far, 4/yr but expecting more.

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Round Tripper on July 2, 2009 - 3:19pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

OH, too. I think five furlough days per year in the new state employee contract.

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eric blair on July 3, 2009 - 3:48pm Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

In a fiat world, all the state has to do is declare "this is money to settle debts with the state", then issue said "money".

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Geckolizard on July 2, 2009 - 10:03am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

Poll: Few Americans say recovery under way

A national poll indicates that nearly half of all Americans think the economy has stabilized, but only one in eight believes that a recovery has started.

Four in 10 questioned in the CNN/Opinion Research Corp. survey released Thursday morning think the country's still in an economic downturn.

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Leanan on July 2, 2009 - 10:42am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

Even the millionaires are bummed out:

Millionaires' springtime optimism wilts: survey

High rollers became slightly bearish last month, according to the index that measures investment sentiment of the wealthy.

The plunge of 18 points to -20 on the Spectrem Millionaire Investor Index in June was a record drop for the index, which was created in 2004.

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dohboi on July 2, 2009 - 10:31am Permalink | Subthread | Parent | Comments top

There goes the thin thread of hope some pundits had been spinning, that the rate of job loss was slowing. It will be interesting to see what straws they grasp at next to claim that things are turning around.

Keep in mind that, because of population increase, the economy has to [i]gain[/i] some hundred thousand jobs a months just to stay in place. So even if we had zero new job growth, we would be loosing.

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135 comments on DrumBeat: July 2, 2009

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