Number of earners unable to find living wage jobs exceeds 24% for third consecutive month
Even though the official government jobless rate shows unemployment has remained steady, the latest report from the Ludwig Institute for Shared Economic Prosperity (LISEP) indicates an increase in functional unemployment, with a rate that has topped 24% for three consecutive months.
LISEP’s April True Rate of Unemployment (TRU) report—a measure of the functionally unemployed, defined as the jobless plus those seeking, but unable to find, full-time employment, and those in poverty-wage jobs—increased from 24% to 24.3%, while the official Bureau of Labor Statistics rate remained unchanged at 4.2%. The functional unemployment rate has remained at 24% or higher since February.
“We are facing a job market where nearly one-in-four workers are functionally unemployed, and current trends show little sign of improvement,” said LISEP Chair Gene Ludwig. “The harsh reality is that far too many Americans are still struggling to make ends meet, and absent an influx of dependable, good-paying jobs, the economic opportunity gap will widen.”
The TRU for Black workers rose 1.4 percentage points to 26.7%, while the rate for White workers decreased slightly, from 23.1% to 23%. The rate for Hispanic workers also rose slightly, from 28.1% to 28.2%.
By gender, the TRU for men increased 1.2 percentage points, to 20%, while the rate for women declined 0.8 percentage points, to 28.6%. This resulted in a slight narrowing of the three-month gender gap, from 9.6% to 9.5%.
“Amid an already uncertain economic outlook, the rise in functional unemployment is a concerning development,” Ludwig said. “This uncertainty comes at a price, and unfortunately, the low- and middle-income wage earners ultimately end up paying the bill. The public would be well served by a commitment from economic policymakers to adopt a stable course of action, based on real-world metrics, that better serves the interests of working Americans.”
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