Unemployment Rates
June 1997 – 4.2 – whites
June 2007 – 4.0 – whites
June 1997 – 10.4 – blacks
June 2007 – 8.5 – blacks
June 1997 – 7.6 – Latinos
June 2007 – 5.7 – Latinos
If Ritalin-popping liberal students observed those numbers their eyes would bug out of their collective heads — like Marty Feldman in “Young Frankenstein.”
Wage Growth — Lower-Tiered Workers
$14.55 – avg. hourly wages, June 2001
$17.38 – avg. hourly wages, June 2007
19.5% – increase in avg. hourly wages, 6/01 – 6/07
16.8% – total consumer inflation, 6/01 – 6/07
If Lou Dobbs saw those numbers he’d probably commit hari-kari.
Overall Job Growth
137.8 million – total employment, June 2003
146.1 million – total employment, June 2007
Ergo:
8.3 million – net gain in employment, 6/03 – 6/07
(173,000/month)
If Krugman saw those figures he’d start acting out like De Niro’s character in “Taxi Driver.”
Payrolls Job Growth
129.8 million – total W-2 employment, June 2003
138.0 million – total W-2 employment, June 2007
Ergo:
8.2 million – net gain in W-2 employment, 6/03 – 6/07
(171,000/month)
Breaking that down by sectors:
91% – private sectors
09% – government
Go figure.
Breaking that down by certain occupations:
1,130,000 – health care
216,000 – computer systems design
215,000 – engineering & architecture
162,000 – management of companies & enterprises
137,000 – accounting
95,000 – securities & investments
81,000 – insurance
48,000 – commercial banking
On the other hand, the publishing and broadcasting industries — i.e., the media — combined generated the sum total of (minus) 3,000 payroll jobs over the past four years.
But there’s still some good news out there for young liberals at big-city newspapers and TV affiliates.
There are plenty of eligible and well-heeled Democrat mayors besides Mr. Villaraigrosa.
Shake those money makers, Chomskies.
* * *
Data source: DOL, BLS.
