By Democratic Socialists of America

Calculated Risk Blog

By Luis Diaz-Perez

In its Sept. 2014 jobs report, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) once again documented the persistent and pernicious effects of the Lesser Depression, which began to take shape when financial services firm Lehman Brothers collapsed and filed for bankruptcy in Sept. 2008.

Exactly six years on, labor force participation continues to decrease, dropping to 62.7 percent last month, the lowest level recorded since 1978. Nonetheless, the BLS boasts that the official unemployment rate declined from 6.1 percent in August to last month’s 5.9 percent, with employment increasing by 248,000 jobs. Retail trade added 35,300 jobs; health care brought on 23,000, with 7,000 Americans going into home health care services; state governments added 22,000 jobs; and, notching another monthly increase, leisure and hospitality added another 33,000 jobs. Curiously, performing arts and spectator sports showed up with 7,200 jobs. However, when it comes to jobs that produce tradable goods, the paltry numbers more clearly illustrate the U.S. economy’s weaknesses. For instance, last month, job losses were noted in computer and electronic products, semiconductors and electronic components, paper and paper products. Overall, manufacturing only added 4,000 jobs across the country. In September 2014, just as it has since the onset of the Lesser Depression, the US economy remained torpid.

Source: September Jobs: Effects of the Lesser Depression Persist