It’s time to stop glorifying our economic doldrums with this “jobless recovery” nonsense.
Yes, the economy did grow in the third quarter, for the first time in a year. Fewer Americans are filing new claims for unemployment insurance, and giant financial institutions appear less apt to collapse and send us into another stupor. The stock market has recovered much of its winter decline.
But so far there is no sign of an employment turnaround — and without one, and soon, all the other gains could prove fleeting.
The U.S. has lost jobs in 22 straight months, and Friday’s news that 10.2% of the labor force is out of work — the highest reading since 1983 — shows just how far we have to go.
Without better job prospects, the consumers whose spending makes up the lion’s share of economic activity will remain tightfisted. That will slow the healing of deep wounds in the housing and financial markets.
“To have a real recovery you need to put people to work,” said John Harrington, who runs Harrington Investments, a socially responsible asset management firm in Napa, Calif. “Right now we aren’t doing that.”
A ‘Jobless Recovery’ Is Nothing to Get Excited About – Colin Barr, Fortune
Also, Seeking to Grow Jobs, Not the Deficit – Moira Herbst, BusinessWeek
