Posted on 09/05/2003 11:15:13 AM PDT by Afronaut
Firms still slashing jobs
WASHINGTON, Sept. 5 — Despite the civilian unemployment rate sliding down to 6.1 percent in August, the government reported Friday that companies slashed payrolls by 93,000, raising new concerns that the fragile economic recovery could falter.
AUGUST WAS THE seventh consecutive month of cuts in payrolls, a survey released by the Labor Department showed, indicating continuing weakness in the job market. Analysts had expected companies to add 12,000 new jobs.
At the same time, the overall seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell from 6.2 percent to 6.1 percent of the labor force, as reflected by a survey of U.S. households. Stock prices fell in early trading Friday on news of the job losses.
The survey of businesses showed that job cuts were heavy again in manufacturing, a sector that has suffered the brunt of the economic downturn that began in March 2001. President Bush on Monday announced that a Commerce Department assistant secretary post was being changed to focus on revitalizing that part of the economy.
Friday’s reports no longer reflected a cyclical economy trying to add jobs after a recession — “which is depressing,” said Sung Won Sohn, chief economist at Wells Fargo. Analysts had expected companies to add some jobs last month.
Deeper concerns now are focused on long-term structural problems in the economy, such as a flood of U.S. jobs going overseas. “We have simply seen the tip of the iceberg,” Sohn said. “I think it will get worse, not better.”
At the White House, spokesman Scott McClellan said, “The economy is growing but we want to see it grow even faster.” He said jobs are one of the last things to grow as the economy improves.
Some reports estimate 5 million jobs — many high-paying — will be lost to other countries by 2015. As the economy grows, demand is being filled from overseas, Sohn said. Also, because of that increasing global competition, businesses are holding down costs by not hiring. If hiring doesn’t improve, the recovery could be in jeopardy because consumers worried about their job prospects will stop spending. That’s been the driving force in the U.S. economy.
Hiring in health care and construction helped offset losses in factories and other industries, such as information, professional and business services and government, Friday’s report said.
Last month’s power blackout in the Northeast and Midwest was unlikely to have affected either of the monthly surveys, Labor Department analysts said.
Labor Department analysts believe the survey of businesses provides a more reliable picture of the jobs market than the household survey. The payroll report is based on a larger sample and estimates “are regularly anchored to” counts derived from employment insurance tax records, said Kathleen P. Utgoff, Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner.
Last month, the number of people in the labor force remained largely unchanged, with just 10,000 giving up their job searches. The labor force is comprised of those working and looking for work.
Nearly 2 million people in August were unemployed for 27 weeks or more, representing nearly 22 percent of all jobless workers. Those figures were similar to July numbers.
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(Excerpt) Read more at msnbc.com ...
These guys are straight out of the Grapes of Wrath. They'll condemn us all to Hooverville with this idiocy.
The Free Traders don't care. They views economics like a religion. You don't question the dogma, just worship at the altar.
Oh, yeah, it's the Clinton approach to running a business, writ large. This past spring the execs had a "brainstorming" session in Napa Valley. The only things that came out if it were hangovers and a failed reorganization strategy. Right after that, the company pres accepted a $3M retention bonus in the same quarter the company lost $50M. But according to some of the apologists in this thread, it's business that's infallible, y'know. Just shut up and move along. Your job was going the way of the dodo anyway and the gross mismanagement had nothing at all to do with it.
How about a translation?
Well said. Nothing brings Democrats to power faster than letting morons run corporate America.
I know, what a hoot. I've been out for four months -- 22 years of experience, over 11 in senior management, and graduate degrees -- and people get on-line and tell you should flip burgers or be a Wal-mart greeter! I can tell they've never been in the situation. Just try getting one of those jobs with a big-time professional background! I have tried. They just laugh. They're looking for 20-somethings with no education or skills. They don't want to hire people with better backgrounds and skills than their top management has!
Hey, but today is a good day. I got an interview for a good top position, however, as these things go these days, it is with a city government (well, they need the help).
Why do the stockholders put up with this? I'm not being rhetorical, I'd really like to know how this passes as good management.
No Good LUCk's Just get it.!!
If you need any support or succor or just someone to bitch at if stuff gets hard as you go through the process, just Freepmail me. I've been there. Hell, I'm still there, actually.
Furthermore, the solution for excessive governmental regulation is not more governmental regulation, just as it is counter-productive to argue "there's no such thing as free trade, so we must make it as unfree as possible."
Belief in efficient markets is not "selling-out," even though it comes with the understanding that the market will choose winners and losers. Finally, belief that the government can do better at choosing winners than the market can is downright dangerous, and the fundamental basis of many failed economic experiments.
The stockholders have no idea what is going on. That's the way it is with every corporation in this country. Most shares are owned by big institutions who are too busy playing pump-and-dump to notice, by daytraders who don't own the stock long enough to receive a proxy statement, or by grandma's who through the proxy statement in the trash because they can't read the legalese.
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