National Unemployment Trends

Unemployment on the RiseIt’s obvious that the current recession has really put a damper on American workers in every state.  Some states have been hit harder than others, and some industries have been decimated while others have held fast to low unemployment numbers. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) publishes its unemployment figures each year based on occupation and sex.  The comparison to 2008 is eye-opening to say the least, and some interesting tidbits of information come to light when you take a look at the numbers for both males and females.

The BLS counts unemployment data nationwide, so sectors that have been hurt by the recession are reflective of not just regional industries but industries and fields on the national level.  Let’s take a look at what the BLS is saying about unemployment by occupation.

Service occupation unemployment has suffered as badly as any other occupation, having its unemployment rate triple in only one year’s time.  Some states that have a high number of service-related jobs are Nevada, and California.  The casinos and hotel industry, especially in Nevada, has been hit very hard.  Nevada’s unemployment rate is second in the nation at 13.2% as of August 2009, and California is the fifth highest at 12.2% as of the same month.

Construction and extraction jobs, as well as building jobs, and transportation and materials moving jobs have been hit extremely hard.  All of these categories show at least a doubling of unemployment rates in the past year.  These industries are closely tied to new home construction as well as commercial real estate development.  Both of these sectors have bore the brunt of the recession’s storm and will likely continue to feel the negative effects of the economic downturn.  The airline industry is one example of a transportation industry sector that has seen some of the worst job losses in recent history.

Interestingly, healthcare related jobs as well as those jobs at the upper levels of management have not seen such dramatic increases in unemployment.  The US healthcare system makes up nearly 20% of the US economy, and is an industry that is always in demand.  Professionals, managers, and highly-skilled workers often have an easier time finding work during economic recessions due to the highly-specialized nature of their skills.  These people are also always in high demand.

Another sector that has been hit extremely hard by the recession and the resulting economic fallout is the production sector.  This includes the auto industry as well as factory workers.  These industries have had a hard time in recent years due to the high level of outsourcing that occurred as well as the bankruptcy of many US automakers.  Michigan’s unemployment rate of 15.2% speaks volumes to the fact that the auto industry’s downfall in the US has affected the economy across the board, not just in Michigan but in other states as well.

The difference in unemployment rates between the sexes also provides some interesting insight into US labor dynamics.  Females in the farming and forestry sector have actually added jobs since 2008, and in the math and hard sciences realm, women have fared much better than their male counterparts.  One of these sectors in particular, the computer and mathematical sector has seen no increase in female unemployment over the past year.  By contrast, in that same sector, males have seen a nearly three-fold increase in unemployment, lending credence to the notion that women are still in very high demand in these fields.