NJ unemployment rates are now highest in nation (credit, employment)

[SeventhFloor]

Originally Posted by AnesthesiaMD

I dont even know what these unemployment numbers mean anymore. Everyone is short staffed and looking for people to work these days, so if the unemployment rate is high, it is not for a lack of available jobs out there.

When you say everyone is short staffed, who's everyone? Are you talking about the pizzeria on the corner, or the robotics company?

I think gig work contributed to the unemployment levels over the past few years. A lot of people started doing gig work during the pandemic when it was lucrative, and was paying more than most entry-level jobs while allowing a flexible schedule.

Now that gig work is not as profitable anymore, people are begrudgingly going back to the W-2 life.

The problem is that these types of jobs really don't pay enough for people to sustain themselves on, and that's the bigger issue.

Sure, everybody likes to bring up the old time argument that these jobs are for "kids" and retirees, but do we really expect a bunch of people in their golden years to apply for service industry jobs when they should be at home, retired? Who's supposed to staff the stores during the day while "kids" are in school?

Kids in quotes because it can range from high school to college aged.

[G1..]

Originally Posted by SeventhFloor

When you say everyone is short staffed, who's everyone? Are you talking about the pizzeria on the corner, or the robotics company?

I think gig work contributed to the unemployment levels over the past few years. A lot of people started doing gig work during the pandemic when it was lucrative, and was paying more than most entry-level jobs while allowing a flexible schedule.

Now that gig work is not as profitable anymore, people are begrudgingly going back to the W-2 life.

The problem is that these types of jobs really don't pay enough for people to sustain themselves on, and that's the bigger issue.

Sure, everybody likes to bring up the old time argument that these jobs are for "kids" and retirees, but do we really expect a bunch of people in their golden years to apply for service industry jobs when they should be at home, retired? Who's supposed to staff the stores during the day while "kids" are in school?

Kids in quotes because it can range from high school to college aged.

Stores don't care. No one offers full benefits anymore and very few kids are applying for these jobs . Grocery stores are a good example, they just use self checkout lanes , very few have fulltime cashiers anymore.

[DannyHobkins]

Originally Posted by G1..

Stores don't care. No one offers full benefits anymore and very few kids are applying for these jobs . Grocery stores are a good example, they just use self checkout lanes , very few have fulltime cashiers anymore.

They moved to self-check out lanes, because of these ridiculous cost for minimum wage now. Why aren't the kids working? Is every 18-25 year old parents giving them money now?

[SeventhFloor]

Originally Posted by G1..

Stores don't care. No one offers full benefits anymore and very few kids are applying for these jobs . Grocery stores are a good example, they just use self checkout lanes , very few have fulltime cashiers anymore.

Look at banks when ATMs came out
When's the last time you went in a bank and every window had a teller
It's not about stores not caring.

[G1..]

Originally Posted by SeventhFloor

Look at banks when ATMs came out
When's the last time you went in a bank and every window had a teller
It's not about stores not caring.

Sorry but we will agree to disagree. Banks reduce Tellers to force you online , Banks would love to have no Brick and Morter buildings , Grocery stores cut back on help and make customers do the check out a cashiers job and don't even give a discount for it. McDonalds has stores with only a few employees to handle drive through. Every order is by app or a Kiosk. Thing is there are jobs but the market has moved those Jobs , Amazon has changed the way people shop. Malls are a thing of the past, a waste of real-estate space.

[skeddy]

People with any skills at all can't afford to spend their time at $25 an hour jobs. You can't live on your own on that. Someone else will have to share expenses with you for you to survive.

[ocnjgirl]

Originally Posted by DannyHobkins

When your state has the highest unemployment rate in the country its a bit of a cause for concern. Keep in mind New Jersey now has more people on unemployment then states that contain a significant amount of Appalachia and urban areas (Washington DC), to let that sink in.

But unemployment figures only counts unemployed who are getting unemployment benefits. There may be lots in Appalachia and urban areas who have long ago used their unemployment so aren’t on the roles anymore but still unemployed.

[SeventhFloor]

Originally Posted by skeddy

People with any skills at all can't afford to spend their time at $25 an hour jobs. You can't live on your own on that. Someone else will have to share expenses with you for you to survive.

Everyone should have the chance to live on their own, regardless of their income. Leaving your parents' home shouldn't be considered a special privilege, as nobody chooses to be born.

It used to be easier to find a job and live independently with just a high school degree, but as companies began requiring college education, it became more challenging for individuals at different income levels. My point is that external factors, like changes in job requirements driven by businesses, have made it more difficult for people to achieve independence.

[Mightyqueen801]

Originally Posted by DannyHobkins

The question is why do we have record unemployment in the state? Why is New Jersey soaring well above all other states? This is not normal. There were no mass layoffs, more people I guess just didnt sit on their butts with remotes last month. We have a Governor who is bragging over and over again how he got minimum wage well above $15. Does this have something to do with it? It seems many small businesses are not able to state afloat in the unfriendly business state.

I'd say Anesthia Doc view about job openings is anecdotal. Per NJ.com “I’m hearing some buzz around that our labor market has become saturated, that we have more people looking for a job than we have jobs for, and there’s a bit of a mismatch,” Rodgers said.

Illegal immigration taking jobs? Declining Mainstreet jobs due to Minimum wage? Really strange that jobs are drying up in the state.

That is the question, and the guy from Rutgers Policy Lab in your second article says they haven't quite nailed down the reason. Jobs are not drying up in the state, drop the drama. Rutgers alludes to the idea that some of the problem may be that certain sectors, particularly business and finance, have taken a hit since the pandemic, and that's where the unemployment issues are. Jobs have actually increased in the state. Just not for certain skills.

Anyway, if this guy whose business it is to know doesn't know, you sure as hell don't know, either. It seems like just sort of another lame attempt to discredit a politcal party.

Here is a good article explaining where the unemployment numbers come from.

https://www.forbes.com/advisor/perso...tate-12-18-23/

Originally Posted by DannyHobkins

These are questions we should be asking, instead of doing what the media does, and hides bad news and the truth from us to protect the elite political class.

You found it easily enough in media, so what do you mean by hiding it? It's public information.

[BugsyPal]

Originally Posted by ocnjgirl

But unemployment figures only counts unemployed who are getting unemployment benefits. There may be lots in Appalachia and urban areas who have long ago used their unemployment so aren’t on the roles anymore but still unemployed.

No, that isn't wholly correct.

State Employment and Unemployment Technical Note

" Civilian labor force and unemployment--from the LAUS program

Definitions. The civilian labor force and unemployment data are based on the same concepts and definitions
as those used for the official national estimates obtained from the Current Population Survey (CPS), a
sample survey of households that is conducted for the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) by the U.S. Census
Bureau. The LAUS program measures employed people and unemployed people on a place of-residence basis. The
universe for each is the civilian noninstitutional population 16 years of age and older. Employed people
are those who did any work at all for pay or profit in the reference week (typically the week including
the 12th of the month) or worked 15 hours or more without pay in a family business or farm, plus those not
working who had a job from which they were temporarily absent, whether or not paid, for such reasons as
bad weather, labor-management dispute, illness, or vacation.

Unemployed people are those who were not employed during the reference week (based on the definition above),
had actively looked for a job sometime in the 4-week period ending with the reference week, and were
currently available for work; people on layoff expecting recall need not be looking for work to be counted
as unemployed. The civilian labor force is the sum of employed and unemployed people. The unemployment rate
is the number of unemployed as a percent of the civilian labor force.

Method of estimation. Estimates for 48 states, the District of Columbia, the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale
metropolitan division, New York City, and the balances of California and New York State are produced using
time-series models. This method, which underwent substantial enhancement at the beginning of 2021, utilizes
data from several sources, including the CPS, the CES, and state unemployment insurance (UI) programs.
Estimates for the state of California are derived by summing the estimates for the Los Angeles-Long Beach-
Glendale metropolitan division and the balance of California. Similarly, estimates for New York State are
derived by summing the estimates for New York City and the balance of New York State. Estimates for the
five additional substate areas contained in this release (the Cleveland-Elyria and Detroit-Warren-Dearborn
metropolitan areas and the Chicago-Naperville-Arlington Heights, Miami-Miami Beach Kendall, and Seattle-
Bellevue-Everett metropolitan divisions) and their respective balances of state are produced using a similar
model-based approach."
https://www.bls.gov/news.release/laus.tn.htm

https://www.nj.gov/labor/labormarket...rce-estimates/

https://www.bls.gov/news.release/laus.toc.htm

Yes, state UI numbers are derived from input based upon those drawing compensation, but there are also several other sources of data. This includes conducting a survey of persons asking if they are employed, unemployed, and unemployed but actively seeking work. It also asks those who are partially unemployed if they are seeking full time employment.

Thus UI numbers in any state can rise if there are large numbers of unemployed persons who are seeking work. This even if they are *NOT* drawing UI benefits.

Right now it appears NJ's UI rate is partially the above; there is a large number of persons who are unemployed who are not finding work. Part this can be (and often is) people not finding work that meets their skill set/education level and so forth.

Right now largest gains in employment driving NJ are heath care, retail, and perhaps hospitality. Meanwhile jobs losses have occurred in skilled trades and various highly educated professionals.

Someone earing $95k-$120k isn't going to take a job as an effing nursing assistant paying $50k.