unemployment

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Global Plunge Panics Economists

Markets dive worldwide as new figures point to intractable slowdown

(Newser) - The markets' global plunge yesterday was testament to a new, scary fact, writes the Washington Post: the world economic crisis is getting even worse. New figures show the economies of Japan, Britain and Germany contracting at their fastest in decades, while emerging markets like Russia and Brazil are tanking, and...

Mugabe Buys Secret $5.8M Hong Kong Getaway

Prez spends lavishly as Zimbabwean economy implodes

(Newser) - While his country battles massive inflation, unemployment and cholera, Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe has secretly bought a $5.8 million residence in Hong Kong, the Times of London reports. His wife recently spent some $80,000 on Vietnamese statues and $12,500 on a bag. When she recently discussed a...

Recession Depression Setting In
 Recession Depression Setting In 

Recession Depression Setting In

One suicide hotline reports a 77% jump in calls

(Newser) - Some people can take losing a job in stride, but Silvia Martinez isn’t one of them. When she lost her $52,000-a-year human resources job, the Virginia woman was too ashamed to tell anyone and sank into a deep depression. “I apply for jobs and apply for jobs...

States Seek to Restrict Employer Credit Checks

Lawmakers want employers to prove credit reports are necessary

(Newser) - Several states and Obama administration officials are seeking restrictions on employers that unfairly screen out job applicants using credit checks, USA Today reports. Spiking unemployment and mortgage foreclosures brought on by the financial crisis have hurt many, and lawmakers say trustworthy people are being shut out of good jobs. Some...

Caterpillar Boss Contradicts Obama on Jobs

Even more layoffs will be needed before stimulus works: CEO

(Newser) - Caterpillar's CEO said the stimulus package would let the company start rehiring laid-off workers, according to President Obama—but he was swiftly contradicted by the boss himself, ABC News reports. CEO James Owens said that even with the stimulus package, the massive scale of the downturn would require the firm...

Compromise Stimulus Means Short-Term Pain
Compromise Stimulus Means Short-Term Pain
ANALYSIS

Compromise Stimulus Means Short-Term Pain

Unemployment will climb, recession will last until end of 2009

(Newser) - The final version of the economic stimulus package will provide less immediate support for the economy than Barack Obama had hoped, reports the Wall Street Journal, and makes it likely that the US will remain in recession through 2009. The $790 billion deal cuts aid to state and local government...

Obama Rallies Support in Hard-Hit Fort Myers

'You have seen hardship,' Obama tells supporters

(Newser) - President Obama headed to Fort Myers, Fla., today to rally support for his economic stimulus plan, telling residents “when the town is burning, you don't check party labels. Everybody needs to grab a hose,” the Miami Herald reports. Obama picked Fort Myers because its county has the highest...

GM Hacks 14% of Salaried Jobs
 GM Hacks 14% of Salaried Jobs 

GM Hacks 14% of Salaried Jobs

(Newser) - GM will cut 10,000 jobs this year, including 3,400 in the US, the Wall Street Journal reports. The cuts represent 14% of GM’s salaried workforce overall, and 12% in the US. Most of those lucky enough to survive the axe will get a 3%-7% pay cut, while...

It's Time for a Backup Plan
 It's Time for a Backup Plan 

It's Time for a Backup Plan

Stay calm, be optimistic, or just go back to school

(Newser) - If you've gotten the ax or fear you're next, it’s time to prepare yourself without panicking, NPR reports. The American Psychological Association advises people to stay calm and make a financial plan to cope with tough times. "It's very hard, but try to stay focused in the present,...

Senate Could Vote on Stimulus Tonight

(Newser) - Harry Reid said he was confident the Senate would produce a stimulus bill ready for voting by tonight, Reuters reports. “We’ve made progress,” the majority leader said of efforts to sweat the measure down from $937 billion. “I think we’re going to be able to...

Stocks Up Despite Job Plunge
 Stocks Up Despite Job Plunge 
MARKET Open

Stocks Up Despite Job Plunge

(Newser) - Stocks shot up at the bell, despite a grisly nonfarm payrolls report, as investors bet on a stimulus package boost. The Dow climbed 100 points, while the S&P and Nasdaq each gained about 1.4%. Unemployment hit 7.6% after a grim January, the Labor Department announced today. But...

Job Losses Hit 3.6M; Unemployment at 7.6%

(Newser) - Nonfarm payrolls plunged 598,000 in January, the Labor Department announced today, bringing the total job losses to 3.6 million since the recession began in December 2007. The drop was significantly worse than analysts anticipated, and the worst since December 1974, the Wall Street Journal reports. The jobless rate...

Stocks Fall on Retail, Job Data
 Stocks Fall on Retail, Job Data 
MARKET Open

Stocks Fall on Retail, Job Data

(Newser) - Stocks slid at the open today, following yet more negative numbers from retailers and the Labor Department, the Wall Street Journal reports. The Dow dropped 52 points, while the S&P fell 1%. The Nasdaq dropped 1.2%, weighed down by sub-par earnings from Cisco. New jobless claims ripped past...

Jobless Claims Set Another Record

626,000 claims filed last week, far more than expected

(Newser) - New jobless claims jumped far more than expected last week in an already dismal labor market, and there's no relief in sight for workers as mass layoffs persist. The Labor Department reports that the number of laid-off workers seeking jobless benefits rose last week to 626,000 from the previous...

Dow Ticks Up Despite Job Woes
 Dow Ticks Up Despite Job Woes 
MARKET Open

Dow Ticks Up Despite Job Woes

522K lost last month, fewer than analysts predicted

(Newser) - Stocks were mixed at today’s open after a report estimating that 522,000 private-sector jobs were lost last month, the Wall Street Journal notes. The Dow started down but was recently up 41 points, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq were marginally higher. Dragging on the Dow were...

Macy's Slashes 7K Jobs
 Macy's Slashes 7K Jobs 

Macy's Slashes 7K Jobs

Job cuts, dividend reduction could save retailer $410M

(Newser) - Macy's said today it will cut 7,000 jobs, or 4% of its work force, and slash its dividend as it looks to lower expenses. The Cincinnati-based retailer says the reduction includes positions in offices, stores, and other locations. The cuts will include some unfilled jobs. Macy's anticipates the reductions...

US Consumer Spending Falls Yet Again

1% drop greater than forecast; 6 straight months of decline

(Newser) - Consumer spending fell in December to finish off its worst year since 1961, Bloomberg reports. Purchases fell 1%, topping analyst estimates of a 0.9% decline. It was the record sixth consecutive month spending has fallen, and that streak may get longer, one economist predicted. Thanks to nearly 2.6...

States Get Creative as Jobs Disappear

Even as tax revenues shrink, states pay to entice employers

(Newser) - State governments, reeling from diminished tax revenues that have forced cuts in services and, in some cases, jobs, increasingly are offering tax breaks and incentives to employers in an effort to stimulate the job market, reports the Wall Street Journal. “Now is not the time to back off the...

Welfare Rolls Not Expanding to Meet Crisis

The 1996 reform is making it tougher for needy to get help as economy flatlines

(Newser) - Welfare programs, rewritten in 1996 to give individual states more control, do not seem to be responding to the growing needs of the disadvantaged as the economy tanks and unemployment soars, reports the New York Times. Some 18 states—including many of those with the highest job losses—actually cut...

What the Stimulus Package Would Get Us

$800 billion, $647-page tome means big gov't again

(Newser) - President Obama’s $800 billion stimulus plan—which stood at 647 pages when it passed the House last week—signals a return to “unabashed” big government, the Los Angeles Times reports. Here’s what it means:
  • For the next 2 years, individuals making under $75,000 will get a
...

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