NELP release on November Jobs Report

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Decmber 2nd that 120,000 jobs were added in November and job growth in the last two months was revised upward. The unemployment rate declined to 8.6 percent, reflecting a modest increase in the number of employed and a significant drop in the number of individuals in the labor force.

While employment gains are roughly in line with population growth, for the country's 13.3 million unemployed workers - and especially the long-term unemployed - today's report still means their joblessness is unlikely to end anytime soon.

"This level of job creation is no match for the dire employment situation in the country," said National Employment Law Project (NELP) executive director Christine Owens. "The private-sector growth of 140,000 jobs and continued losses in the public sector mean we are still a long ways off from rebuilding a battered economy and restoring opportunity for Americans," Owens added. "Distressingly, 315,000 people dropped out of the labor force last month, reflecting continued worker discouragement."

"What's more, job growth since the official end of the recession has been heavily concentrated in lower-wage sectors like retail and food services and drinking places, which together accounted for about two-thirds of jobs gains last month as we entered the holiday season."

In November, the number of Americans unemployed for six months or longer-the long-term unemployed-was at 5.7 million, or 43.0 percent of the unemployed. The average duration of unemployment climbed to 40.9 weeks - a record high - reflecting the severity of the ongoing unemployment crisis.

These numbers come just weeks before the December 31st cutoff when federal unemployment insurance programs are scheduled to expire. Out of more than six million Americans currently receiving some form of unemployment insurance, close to two million will be cut off from federal unemployment programs in January alone unless Congress renews them quickly. NELP's October report, Hanging On By a Thread, has more.

"Despite the reported drop in the unemployment rate, this report is not the holiday cheer that millions of unemployed Americans could use right now," said Owens. "Long-term unemployment remains at historic levels. Job opportunities remain few and far between, with more than four unemployed workers for every job opening. And now, the threat that federal unemployment insurance programs could be yanked from millions of unemployed workers and their families casts a very dark cloud over the horizon. It's a no-brainer that these programs must be renewed."

The Emergency Unemployment Compensation Extension Act, recently introduced in the House and Senate, would renew federal unemployment insurance programs through 2012.

Job growth in November is still not enough to make a serious dent in the nation's severe jobs deficit. The economy needs roughly 6.3 million new jobs to replace those lost during and after the Great Recession, plus nearly 4.6 million more to account for working-age population growth over the same period. That makes the total jobs deficit - the number of jobs needed to recover -10.9 million. (See NELP's analysis here).

"Without more robust and sustained job growth, the jobs deficit is going nowhere fast," stated Owens. "Without creation of more good-paying jobs, workers and their families will continue to fall behind, whether they have jobs or not."

"In the heart of the holidays, millions of families in America are hanging on by a thread and wondering if Congress is going to be there for them," said Owens. "The choice for Congress could not be starker. Will it ensure that our nation's unemployed and their families receive the modest help they need to get through these impossible times, or elevate tax policies allowing the wealthiest among us to continue to reap towering profits and gains at the expense of the rest of us? Will it preserve and strengthen core workplace protections and the employment-based social insurance safety net that workers today so desperately need, or rip these to shreds through regulatory repeals that anoint CEOs with even greater powers and less accountability."

"Americans need our elected leaders in Washington and in the states to make choices that will address the jobs crisis and ensure that millions of families still trapped in the unemployment crisis do not plummet into even greater destitution and despair," said Owens. "More than ever, Democrats and Republicans must put aside ideological differences and come together to do what's right for the American people and our economic well-being."