It's fun--in a dreary sort of way--to read interpretations of the Obama Depression.
Since Barack Obama took office, the civilian non-institutional
population has increased by 8.7 million, and yet only 437,000 people
have been added to the civilian labor force — i.e. those working or
seeking work. That’s an awful absorption rate of new population into the
workforce of just 5 percent.
This has helped to keep the unemployment rate misleadingly low at its
current 7.8 percent level. If the labor force participation rate had
held steady since 2009, the jobless rate today would be more like 11
percent.
We've heard all the excuses--like "retirements". BS.
...While Baby Boomers retiring would be expected to lower the labor force
participation rate, the population of those 65 years and older has only
increased by about 4.4 million since Obama took office. So, a retirement
boom alone cannot account for the anomaly.
So where are the missing labor force participants?
...one must observe the declining labor force participation particularly
amongst those with some college and with college degrees, a population
that grew by 9.4 million since Dec. 2008.
Since that time, the participation rate of college graduates has
dropped significantly — from 77.6 percent to about 75.9 percent today.
That accounts for about 1.1 million graduates who should have entered
the labor force, but didn’t.
Another 1.7 million with some college or an associate’s degree should
have also entered the labor force, but are nowhere to be found as the
participation rate there dropped from 71.9 percent to 68.8 percent.
And there are the 2 million or so who have simply given up looking.
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