Latest Government Data Shows U.S. Still in Hiring Mode
Monday, January 12th, 2015 -- 11:34 AM
(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) -From Amazon.com Inc.'s colossal new shipping center in Kenosha to an upscale brewery in Milwaukee, the nation remained steadily in hiring mode last month, U.S. government data showed Friday.American employers added an estimated 252,000 to their payrolls in December, capping the best year for job growth since the tech-boom year of 1999. Last month's job report card also suggests the recovery is gaining traction five years after the economy turned the corner from the financial crisis of 2008-'09.
The unemployment rate, measured from a separate monthly government survey, improved by 0.2 percentage points to 5.6% last month, matching its levels before the financial market meltdowns and well below its 2009 peak of 10%.
But Friday's report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics also included statistical evidence that the rising tide isn't lifting all the boats.
For instance, the jobs that were created in the recovery often don't pay as well as the 8 million that were obliterated in the 2008-'09 downturn, as think tanks have documented for much of the past year. What's more, the number of multiple job holders increased to an estimated 7.3 million last month from 6.9 million 12 months earlier.
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