Employment News Dec. 13 - 17

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News
FRIDAY
Nevada jobless rate rises to 14.3 percent
Nevada's jobless rate increased in November, even as new statistics show improvements in important wage indicators.
China's labor market: Valuable asset or economic albatross?
Even as pundits sharply debate China's economic future, most agree that much of it is riding on the stability of its working population. And depending on who you talk to, the Chinese labor market is either Beijing's biggest asset or its ultimate albatross.

THURSDAY
Jobless Claims in U.S. Unexpectedly Fell to 420,000 Last Week
Fewer workers than forecast filed claims for unemployment benefits last week, pointing to a drop in firings that signals the U.S. job market is improving.
How states fared on jobless claims, at a glance
Applications for unemployment benefits dipped by 3,000 to 420,000 in the week ending Dec. 11. That's the third drop in the past four weeks and evidence that layoffs are declining. Here are states with the biggest increases and declines in claims, with some reasons for the changes. The state data is for the week ending Dec. 4, one week behind the nationwide data.
Obama Pushes CEOs on Job Creation
At Blair House Meeting, President Continues Charm Offensive to Repair Frayed Relations With Corporate America

WEDNESDAY
Yahoo layoffs: 600 jobs cut in long-rumored move
Yahoo cut about 600 jobs Tuesday, the company confirmed, finally swinging the ax on layoffs that had been widely rumored for weeks.

MONDAY
What happens when the jobless give up?
Whatever the right mix of reasons, the fallout is crippling. Economically, long-term joblessness means fewer dollars for consumption. For deficit control, it means fewer taxpayers contributing to government revenues and tens of billions more spent on unemployment insurance. Then there is the psychological toll on individuals and families -- and on the nation.

Economists Comments
THURSDAY
Why Unemployment Will Remain High for Years, Part 2
Most of the increase in money supply is coming from quantitative easing. This suggests that real capital is weak, economic growth will be hindered, and new jobs won't be created.

Blogs
FRIDAY
Why Unemployment Will Remain High For Years (Part II)
Why aren’t jobs being created?
99ers and the continual decline
What will happen to Americans whose unemployment benefits have totally run out?
Unemployment Extension Won’t Help 99ers
The extension for unemployment benefits that is part of the compromise tax deal is good news for many of the unemployed, but it won’t provide aid to anyone who’s been out of a job over 99 weeks.

WEDNESDAY
Why Unemployment Will Remain High For Years – Part I
There are 15.1 million workers unemployed in America (U-1). Another 9 million are working temp for economic reasons, and another 2.5 million are marginally attached or discouraged from the work force (U-6). That is about 26.6 million people in trouble. We can argue about the “true” number of unemployed but for the purpose of this article, the fact that it is high under any measure is sufficient.
Unemployment Benefits, Inequality and Finance, Larry Summers
A roundup of economic news from around the Web.

TUESDAY
Secondary Sources: Struggling Men, QE2, Fiscal Follies
A roundup of economic news from around the Web.
Charting America's Transformation To A Part-Time Worker Society, Following 6 Straight Months Of Full Time Job Declines
It is surprising that over the past several years very little has been said in the popular media about the fact that America is slowly (but surely) transforming from a full-time to part-time employed society. And while much has been said about the temporary and now past impact of census hiring, and government jobs on the workforce, there are still few mentions in mainstream media that since the depression started in December 2007, America has lost 10.5 million full time jobs, offset by a 2.8 million increase in part time jobs.

MONDAY
Here come the '99ers
As I mentioned last week, the proposed tax legislation provides no additional help for the so-called "99ers". The "extension of the unemployment benefits" is an extension of the qualifying dates for the various tiers of benefits, and not additional weeks of benefits.
Are Jobs Growing Or Stagnant?
Recent reports on the employment in America have generally been disappointing. The numbers are all over the board depending on who you wish to believe. The BLS is negative, Gallup is positive.

Reports
WEDNESDAY
A Free Enterprise Prescription: Unleashing Entrepreneurs to Create Jobs
The Obama Administration’s $862 billion stimulus bill was an expensive failure that increased the federal deficit, contributed to America’s deteriorating fiscal health, and failed to reduce unemployment. Instead of repeating this mistake, Congress should alleviate business fears and economic uncertainty by maintaining the current tax policy (extending the 2001 and 2003 tax rates) and freezing costly new regulations. Then, Congress should rescind unspent stimulus funds, suspend federal regulations that unnecessarily suppress economic activity, conclude pending free trade agreements, and adopt other pro–free market steps. By enacting these reforms, Congress can unleash substantial economic growth, reduce unemployment, and reduce the deficit without spending a dollar of taxpayer money.