jimmytavino 16 #1 June 24, 2008 so as we read, and as we are spoon fed by the media, it is reported that the 'unemployment rate' is 5 %............ well I dispute that statistic........ the true unemployment rate , should be based on this condition..... how many men And women,,,, between the ages of 21 and 62 years of age? HAVE a J. O. B. at which they spend 32 hours a week or more??? we count EVERYone... Not just those who are "collecting unemployment benefits"... I live and work in a medium sized US city... and i travel throughout the area, frequently, and I SEE certain evidence that MANY MANY able bodied adults of the age range noted above, do Not Now, or have not EVER, and likely will not in the near future, be employed.... Especially in the city, i see people doing mostly nothing,,,hanging around on sidewalks, sitting on porches, gathering in groups, to 'socialize', play cards, shoot dice, litter the neighborhood, and waste the day,, while the sidewalks and very yards of the homes which they inhabit, are littered with debris, overgrown vegetation, junk vehicles, and general garbage...I see young and old alike,, walking out of a corner store, tearing open a bag of chips or a candy bar wrapper, and tossing them on the ground, like it's the most natural thing in the world... Chain link fences, which collect this debris like a seine net,,,,gives testimony to the fact that while the offender figures,, " someone gets paid to clean the streets", the reality is that No One is cleaning the streets... there is a huge need for local crews to handle just That. but with tight budgets, and other priorities and a citizenry which finds such work,, "beneath them".... the vicious cycle continues.... i would venture to say that the rate of those who DO NOT WORK..... just HAS to be closer to 50 %.... it has to be... The various agencies who track such things, use skewered data, I M H O ..... 5 percent.. simply does not reflect what I see out there every Day... Even In suburbia, where the homes are "palaces' and there MAY be a high ticket wage earner at the helm....often a spouse or adult children have No NEED to work,,, so they don't... The well - to - do wives, of big dollar types,,,MAY contribute to the local economy at resaurants, boutiques, hair salons, and country clubs.. but If we poll every man and woman of the ages mentioned above, and ask the simple question.. "do you have a Job"?... again i state,,,, the true answer would be 50 % or MORE,, do not....regardless of their need to work, or their freedom NOT to work... plainly speaking.. It's possible that more people do not work, than Do..... Am i accurate,, or am I waaay off base... feedback is welcomed... enlighten me... or else be enlightened BY me.... jimmytavino, a working man since the age of 14. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
StreetScooby 5 #2 June 24, 2008 You cannot trust that number, or others being tossed around by our government. Re: unemployment, once you're unemployed after 6 months, and lose benefits, you're no longer considered unemployed!.We are all engines of karma Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MarkF 0 #3 June 24, 2008 Quote i would venture to say that the rate of those who DO NOT WORK..... just HAS to be closer to 50 %.... it has to be... The various agencies who track such things, use skewered data, I M H O ..... 5 percent.. simply does not reflect what I see out there every Day... I don't know how unemployment stats are arrived at in the US but here in Oz it's all very strange and borders on being an outright lie. If you are of "participation age" ( between 15 and 65 and not being educated either part of full time ) and are working ONE hour or more per week, doing 15 hours per fortnight voluntary work or are engaged in a Work for the Dole activity, you are classed as employed. Nearly 32% of people of "participation age" are actively looking for more work. Very nearly 50% of "participation age" people in Oz are receiving some level of unemployment benefit. I work in the "Welfare to Work" sector and on a daily basis see that the government numbers are bordering on being a lie. If you want to read about a TRULY brain dead government initiative do a google search for "work for the dole" or "WFD". It does NOTHING that the government claims that it does and the government funded "Job Network" commonly use WfD as a punishment for being enemployed.... What I'm saying here is that government numbers are very nearly lies and that government is doing nothing constructive to help those who with a bit of REAL assistance will gain full time employment and will no longer need unemployment benefits to survive. I bet that the "system" in the USA is not all that much different. I'm not for a nano-second defending those shit-for-brains bludgers who are quite content to exist (and exist is all it is) on unemployment benefits because they just can't be bothered working for a living. Ooroo Mark F... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Gawain 0 #4 June 24, 2008 The Bureau of Labor Statistics has extremely detailed statistics in the areas you are pointing out: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.toc.htm ...stats by population segments, sex, age...seasonally adjusted...pick your poison...So I try and I scream and I beg and I sigh Just to prove I'm alive, and it's alright 'Cause tonight there's a way I'll make light of my treacherous life Make light! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Andrewwhyte 1 #5 June 24, 2008 The EMPLOYMENT RATE and the UNEMPLOYMENT RATE are not compliments, as one would tend to think they are. The employment rate is the number of people with a job/ the number of people. The unemployment rate is the number of people with out a job/ the number of people who want one. For example is a stay at home mom unemployed, or is she not participating in the job market? What about that guy who just won the powerball lotto, Is he unemployed or just retired at age 31? Is the local drug dealer unemployed, or employed in the black market? these people are captured in the LABOR MARKET PARTICIPATION RATE. As usual the statistics do not lie. However they are more complex than the simplistic way they are portrayed in the media. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Amazon 7 #6 June 24, 2008 Jimmy, I dont think its as high as 50% but it is certainly much higher than the feel good statistics put out by the government. That number is just a guide as you noted of those recieving benefits. That does not include the unemployable....or the scam artists who would NEVER consent to actually work for a living when they can get by on theiving etc. It also does not include the underground economy based on cash or barter.. those who wish to stay off the radar completely as tax evaders.... or those who wish to avoid the court ordered payments to their childrenThere are also a LOT of disenchanted workers who have given up even trying to find a job... that the government does not even track. This economy has a problem.. and the feel good stats do not help paint the corect picture.. just the picture that those in charge WANT us to believe. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kelpdiver 2 #7 June 24, 2008 sorry, it's not 50%. The Labor stats show the number of employed, and it's about half the living population of the country. Subtract retired, young, and disabled. You're really talking about the underemployment rate and the chronically unemployed (exhausted benefits). Muddling the picture further is the growing number of 1099 contract workers. The telling bit to me is the very large jump - .5% nationally, .6% in California. That's a pretty big shift. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jimmytavino 16 #8 June 24, 2008 ok kelp... well thanks..still i find it tough to believe that the "employed" total Half of ALL citizens..... seems like that's a lot my O P was mostly off the cuff and from my own intuition, if you will...and maybe tinged with sadness and cynicism... so maybe 35% are "not working' , yet they are not even factored in... 35 % is still Seven Times the numbers given to us , by the 'experts'..... Now don't even get me started about the Productivity level of todays worker..... as compared to years past... and i refer to True productivity..... that's a whole separate topic... jmy Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
