OCTOBER LABOR MARKET INSIGHTS
Contributed by Michael Horrigan, President of W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.
I want to take the opportunity to clear up some important misconceptions that have emerged in interpreting recent labor market data. On a number of occasions I have been asked if the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) unemployment numbers are a true reflection of what is currently happening in U.S. labor markets? In particular, concern is expressed over the much lower levels of unemployment reported by BLS as compared to Unemployment Insurance (UI) recipiency levels. My answer is...