It’s that Friday again! The one where we learn just how terrible the employment situation was across the country in the previous month. Just what your hangover needs! Here’s the bad news straight, no chaser: As the federal government cut temporary census-worker jobs by 143,000, unemployment in the United States rose for the second straight month, with the economy losing 131,000 non-farm jobs in July. While private employment — considered a better measure of the economy’s recovery — rose by 71,000 jobs, this was still less than some analysts had anticipated. According to Reuters (which called this rate of recovery “anemic”), the percentage of unemployed holding steady was yet again because many discouraged workers have given up looking for jobs. Needless to say, this is not what Barack Obama and the Democrats want to hear as they head into midterm-election season.
Economy sheds 131,000 jobs in July [Reuters]
