The economic research firm’s “True Rate of Unemployment” (TRU) seeks to capture the share of workers that the group defines as “functionally unemployed.” This includes not only people who are unemployed and looking for a job, but also those who are involuntarily working part-time and who are earning poverty-level wages, or less than $26,000 annually before taxes.
Functional unemployment across the U.S. has climbed four straight months and stood at 24.9% as of July, although that’s down from 25.2% in December, according to the Ludwig Institute.
i appreciate any org trying to untangle the web of BS around the “unemployment rate” in the US.
i hate the establishment crowing about mid/low single digit unemployment rates as defined by the most tortured calculus ever constructed, when i know goddamn well shit is wildly fucked, has been for nearly 2 decades, and in recent years the desperation has grown palpable.
i am thankful as hell to be in a reasonably stable situation for now with housing and employment, but i have deep concerns about what our communities will be facing as we move into the cold months with this energy shock we’ve been locked into on top of the general affordability crisis, as the imperial system decays.
something else that bothers me is how few seem to be aware that the fuel and fossil energy prices we’re seeing are just the beginning, that it will almost certainly get worse as the strategic reserves deplete, and that no amount of political will can overcome the material reality of this situation.
we are on a trajectory for a “hard” transition for decarbonization in the US and that will have real consequences for those with the most limited means.