News
CNN Money | Fewer Americans are unemployed long-term
The ranks of the long-term unemployed are thinning -- but that's not necessarily good news.
Econ Comments & Analysis
Real Clear Markets | Why Friday's Jobs Report Was Ominous
Friday's "Employment Situation" report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) wasn't just bad, it was ominous. We're going to discuss what was ominous about it, and what progressive economic policies have to do with all of this. However, first, let's look at why the report was not good news.
Washington Post | Employers lack confidence, not skilled labor
Are we missing a couple million jobs? These would be jobs that exist but lack workers to fill them. The notion that the recovery is being hobbled by too few skilled workers is seductive.
Washington Times | No relief in the numbers
Friday’s official jobs numbers were better than expected. The Labor Department says 165,000 private-sector positions were created in April, pushing the unemployment rate down to 7.5 percent, a decline of only a tenth of a percentage point from March.
NBER | The Impact of City Contracting Set-Asides on Black Self-Employment and Employment
In the 1980s, many U.S. cities initiated programs reserving a proportion of government contracts for minority-owned businesses. The staggered introduction of these set-aside programs is used to estimate their impacts on the self-employment and employment rates of African-American men.
AEI | Why the good jobs report should worry the Obama administration
Last month, the chattering classes were sent into a tizzy by the negative surprise from the March jobs report. Economists had expected that job creation would be about double the 88,000 that was reported, because of the relative strength of other data. Our advice in this space then was to sit back and wait for revisions:
Blogs
WSJ | Jobs Gains Are Strong, Wages Not So Much
The April jobs report is certainly good news for the economic outlook and it offers evidence that the spring slowdown will not last into summer.
