As many economists confirm, the national jobless rate slightly rose a 0.1 point in January 2017, to 4.8 percent. Since the unemployment rate was little changed, it can be said with certainty that the overall percentage of unemployed population remained at pretty much the same level. Unlike the current US unemployment rate that stayed almost the same, the labor force participation rate rose by around 0.2 percentage point. In regard to the major worker groups, it is particularly about the jobless rate for Asians that has increased dramatically up to 3.7 percent. On the other hand, the unemployment rate among Blacks, Whites, and Hispanics has remained basically the same level. The January rise in the U.S. unemployment rate evoked small business concerns, for it was actually expected to hold steady at this level covering January to March.
According to official data, the long-term unemployment rate accounted for 24 percent of total unemployment within the United States. To be more specific, the number of long-term unemployed stayed almost unchanged and held at 1.9 million. Reflecting back upon the latest estimates of the number of unemployed persons, it becomes apparent that “the unemployment rate rose one-tenth of a percentage point to 4.8 percent” (Mutikani). On the whole, the US jobless rate ticked up to 4.8 percent against the background of a substantial rise in labor force participation.
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In other words, America should be viewed as currently experiencing an increase in labor supply, while the actual demand for labor continues to remain unchanged. In reality, a growing number of business experts argue that the U.S. labor market slack is mostly likely to persist until late 2017; this gives legitimate grounds for suggesting that America is far from being able to essentially reduce national unemployment rate in the nearest future.
- Mutikani, Lucia. U.S. Job Growth Beats Expectations in January, Wages Soft. The Huffington Post N.p., 3 Feb. 2017. Web. 6 Mar. 2017.
