Monday, November 10, 2014

Obozo's "Jobs" Report

We all heard the chest-thumping when Golfer-in-Chief yapped about the October jobs report.

Uh-huh.

For the second month in a row, a majority of the new jobs added were low-quality positions, existing below the median wage level. The lowest wage category alone accounted for nearly one-third of the new additions listed in the jobs reports from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This is clear evidence that we are still in the grips of a low-wage recovery.  

Digging deeper into the numbers, we see that food service and drinking places (the main component of the lowest wage category) accounted for the largest employment gains last month. This sector, which pays an average hourly wage of just $12.57, added nearly 42,000 positions, representing approximately 20% of all the October jobs.  Unfortunately, low-wage jobs like these do not provide enough income to boost consumer spending or encourage more borrowing, so their overall impact on the economy is negligible. 

In total, 55% of the jobs added in October fell below the median wage level....S. Geradot/Dent Research

That's barely taxable income, folks.

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