Who's jobless: older, educated men
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| Sat, 02-07-2009 - 1:06pm |
Complete article at: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2008717513_melt10107.html
Who's jobless: older, educated men
The unemployed population is getting older and more educated as companies ramp up layoffs and the recession deepens.
The total number of unemployed increased by more than 50 percent from January 2008 through last month, but the number of jobless Americans 55 or older jumped by 70 percent, according to new Labor Department numbers released Friday.
For people with college degrees, the number rose even more sharply, by nearly 85 percent.
Unemployment by the numbers
THE INFORMATION on age and college education is a sample of the wealth of data beyond the headline-unemployment rate that shows up in the Labor Department's monthly employment report. Here are some more details about who is included in the ranks of the jobless, by the numbers.
January versus past downturns
11.6 million: People unemployed in January 2009.
11.9 million: People unemployed in November 1982, the final month of the last recession that lasted more than a year.
7.6 percent and 153.7 million: Unemployment rate and total work force in January 2009.
10.8 percent and 111.1 million: Unemployment rate and total work force in November 1982.
September 1992: Last time the unemployment rate was this high.
60.5 percent: Portion of the total population that had jobs in January.
May 1986: Last time the portion was this low.
January jobless rate by group
7.6 percent: Adult men
6.2 percent: Adult women
10.3 percent: Female heads of households
6.2 percent: Asians
6.9 percent: Whites
9.7 percent: Hispanics
12.6 percent: Blacks
20.8 percent: Teenagers
Jobs harder to find
22.4 percent: Share of unemployed in January who have been looking for 27 weeks or longer.
18.1 percent: The same figure in January 2008, one month into the recession.
22.8 percent: The share in June 2003, when the unemployment rate peaked after the last recession.
Snapshots of January's jobless
2.75 million: People who were trying re-enter the work force after leaving work for reasons such as parenthood or retirement.
2.1 million: People who wanted to work, were available for work and had looked for work in the past 12 months but had not looked in the past month.
7.8 million: People working part time because of slow work or business conditions.
Who is surveyed
60,000: Number of households interviewed in the monthly Census Bureau survey from which the unemployment rate is extrapolated.
40 percent: Portion of companies in the survey of businesses, from which payroll and job-loss numbers are extrapolated, with fewer than 20 employees.
Highs and lows
22.6 percent: Unemployment rate for El Centro, Calif., in December, the most recent month for which a local figure is available.
2.7 percent: December rate for Morgantown, W.Va.
Source: The Associated Press






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