Unemployment falls in the states

The good economic news continues.

Unemployment rates fell in 43 states in November, the most states to report such declines in eight years.

The falling state rates reflect the brightening jobs picture nationally. The U.S. unemployment rate fell sharply in November to 8.6%, lowest since March 2009. The economy has generated 100,000 or more jobs five months in a row — first time that’s happened since 2006, before the Great Recession.

Only three states reported higher unemployment rates in November, the Labor Department said Tuesday. Four showed no change.

Other good news today came in the form of housing starts. People aren’t buying home so many people are renting. Now the construction market is responding as more apartment buildings are going to be built. This might be good news for construction workers around the country.

  

Jobless claims continue downward trend

Are we finally seeing light at the end of the tunnel?

Last month the unemployment rate dipped to 8.6%, and now we continue to see better numbers as it relates to weekly jobless claims.

The number of U.S. workers filing new applications for unemployment benefits fell to the lowest level in three-and-a-half years last week, the latest indication that a weak labor market is improving.

Initial jobless claims fell by 19,000 to a seasonally adjusted 366,000 in the week ended Dec. 10, the Labor Department said Thursday. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had forecast claims would climb by 9,000 to 390,000.

“This is unexpectedly great news,” said Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics. “If claims can remain at this level, payroll growth will strengthen markedly within a month or so.”

For the week ended Dec. 3, claims were revised up slightly to 385,000 from an originally reported 381,000. Still, new claims have fallen by 19,000 two weeks in a row.

The four-week moving average of new jobless claims, closely watched by economists because it smooths out volatile weekly data, dropped last week by 6,500 to 387,750. That is the lowest level since July 2008.

The four-week average has remained below 400,000 for five consecutive weeks, one sign the economy is adding more jobs than it is shedding.

If you’ve been looking for a job but have become discouraged, now is the time to get back out there and redouble your efforts. The economy has some momentum, and economic optimism is returning. Right now Europe seems like the most important headwind for economic growth, but conditions here at home are getting better. Car sales are improving and that is one of the factors driving economic activity.

  

AOL Cuts Nearly 1,000 Jobs

AOL BUILDING

AOL cut 20 percent of its workforce today, eliminating 950 jobs in the U.S. and India. Last year, the company cut 2,300 employees during its first round of layoffs. This year’s round of layoffs was aimed at trimming the budget, getting rid of positions that no longer serve a purpose, and eliminating jobs that overlapped with the Huffington Post website, which AOL acquired just days ago. None of the 250 Huffington Post employees that joined AOL lost their jobs. Instead, 200 employees who work for AOL’s media and technology groups lost their jobs, and 750 employees in India.

In the U.S., AOL laid off reporters and editors who worked for its travel site and business, personal finance sites Daily Finance and Wallet Pop. It also cut across its news and politics sites, including Politics Daily, according to people familiar with the matter. Employees who were laid off started packing up their belongings on Thursday, a person familiar with the matter said.

The operations in India are in part a vestige of AOL’s old business as an Internet service provider, starting with call center outsourcing into 2002 and later changing into a business operations center. Recently, the group focused more on tech and financial support as well as functions such as advertising operations.

Although AOL acquired the Huffington Post for $315 million, the company is still on shaky ground. According to WSJ, AOL shares are trading at their lowest levels since the company split off from Time Warner Inc. in December 2009. Shares of AOL were off 34 cents, or 1.8 percent, to $19 in Thursday 4 p.m. composite trading on the New York Stock Exchange. And according to research firm eMarketer Inc., AOL’s ad revenues dropped 26 percent in 2010, while the overall online ad market grew around 14 percent. AOL has steadily lost market share to rivals Google Inc. and Facebook Inc.

AOL CEO Tim Armstrong said he expects AOL’s online advertising business to start growing again during the second half of the year.

“AOL remains in the middle of the disruption that the Internet is causing and we are starting to move from being a disrupted brand to a brand that is leading the disruption,” Mr. Armstrong said in his memo. “The changes we are making are not easy, but they are the right changes for the long-term health of the company, the brand, and for our employees.”

After all is said and done, AOL will employ about 4,000 people. This figure does not include staff that currently work for AOL’s local Patch news sites, which recently hired 1,200 new employees.

  

Would You Relocate to Find a Job?

JOB AHEAD SIGN

Before you decide to relocate to another state because you read somewhere that it’s the “best state to find a job,” it’s best to do your homework. This means, find out what types of jobs are actually available and why. You might be surprised by what you discover.

The Huffington Post published an article today titled “The Top 11 States To find a Job,” but it turns out that many of the jobs are low-paying and mostly available in three main industries: agriculture, natural resource extraction, and federal government work.

Gallup has published its latest Job Creation Index, providing a state-by-state comparison of which states predominately hired, fired, and stood pat in 2010. As the U.S. job market struggled, the highest-ranking states relied on one of three industries: agriculture, natural resource extraction, or federal government work.

But not all jobs — or state economies — are created equal, and many of the states on Gallup’s list often create low-paying jobs. Arkansas, for example, ranks fifth best on Gallup’s Job Creation Index, but its median household income is a $39,392, good for second-worst in the country. Maryland, on the other hand, might rank lower on the index, but it has the third-highest median household income in the country.

Gallup based its rankings on nearly 200,000 interviews conducted only with employed adults. Interviewees said whether their company was hiring, not changing in size or laying off workers. The Job Creation Index number represents that difference between “the percentage reporting an expansion and the percentage reporting a reduction in their workforces.”

If you’re still interested in finding out what the states on the Gallup list have to offer, the 11 states below made the cut:

11. Pennsylvania
2010 Job Creation Index: 13
Percent Hiring: 31.2
Percent Letting Go: 18.8
Unemployment Rate: 8.5% (Dec. 2010)
GDP Per Capita: $39,578 (19/51)
Median Household Income: $49,829 (26/51)

10. Iowa
2010 Job Creation Index: 13
Percent Hiring: 29.9
Percent Letting Go: 17.1
Unemployment Rate: 6.1% (Dec. 2010)
GDP Per Capita: $36,751 (28/51)
Median Household Income: $50,422 (23/51)

9. Oklahoma
2010 Job Creation Index: 14
Percent Hiring: 31.7
Percent Letting Go: 18.0
Unemployment Rate: 6.8% (Dec. 2010)
GDP Per Capita: $35,268 (34/51)
Median Household Income: $45,507 (40/51)

8. Texas
2010 Job Creation Index: 14
Percent Hiring: 32.1
Percent Letting Go: 18.1
Unemployment Rate: 8.3% (Dec. 2010)
GDP Per Capita: $36,484 (29/51)
Median Household Income: $47,143 (35/51)

7. Maryland
2010 Job Creation Index: 15
Percent Hiring: 34.3
Percent Letting Go: 19.1
Unemployment Rate: 7.4% (Dec. 2010)
GDP Per Capita: $48,285 (5/51)
Median Household Income: $65,183 (3/51)

6. West Virginia
2010 Job Creation Index: 15
Percent Hiring: 32.5
Percent Letting Go: 17.1
Unemployment Rate: 9.7% (Dec. 2010)
GDP Per Capita: $32,219 (45/51)
Median Household Income: $40,627 (49/51)

5. Arkansas
2010 Job Creation Index: 17
Percent Hiring: 32.5
Percent Letting Go: 16.0
Unemployment Rate: 7.9% (Dec. 2010)
GDP Per Capita: $31,946 (46/51)
Median Household Income: $39,392 (50/51)

4. Alaska
2010 Job Creation Index: 19
Percent Hiring: 35.1
Percent Letting Go: 15.8
Unemployment Rate: 7.9% (Dec. 2010)
GDP Per Capita: $42,603 (10/51)
Median Household Income: $63,505 (5/51)

3. South Dakota
2010 Job Creation Index: 21
Percent Hiring: 29.9
Percent Letting Go: 8.9
Unemployment Rate: 4.7% (Dec. 2010)
GDP Per Capita: $36,935 (26/51)
Median Household Income: $48,416 (29/51)

2. Washington D.C.
2010 Job Creation Index: 21
Percent Hiring: 29.9
Percent Letting Go: 8.9
Unemployment Rate: 4.7% (Dec. 2010)
GDP Per Capita: $36,935 (26/51)
Median Household Income: $48,416 (29/51)

1. South Dakota
2010 Job Creation Index: 29
Percent Hiring: 37.6
Percent Letting Go: 8.2
Unemployment Rate: 3.8% (Dec. 2010)
GDP Per Capita: $39,530 (20/51)
Median Household Income: $49,450 (27/51)

  

Wanna Job? Move to Silicon Valley

Silicon Valley

Ah, 2004. U.S. unemployment was a mere 6% and the average home price reached $264,540. 2004 was a time when many people lived well and earned more. Well today, many industries are either down and out, or out altogether, and many cities throughout the U.S. still have high unemployment rates. Silicon Valley is an exception.

Read the rest of this entry »

  

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