Italian Unemployment Just Hit a New Record

By Jordan Weissmann

That guy has nowhere to be, I promise.

Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images

It’s been a while, thankfully, since the eurozone was in full-blown meltdown mode. But there’s still plenty of slow-burning economic misery in the common currency area.

The Crisis of the Middle Class and American Power

When I wrote about the crisis of unemployment in Europe, I received a great deal of feedback. Europeans agreed that this is the core problem while Americans argued that the United States has the same problem, asserting that U.S. unemployment is twice as high as the government's official unemployment rate. My counterargument is that unemployment in the United States is not a problem in the same sense that it is in Europe because it does not pose a geopolitical threat. The United States does not face political disintegration from unemployment, whatever the number is. Europe might.

At the same time, I would agree that the United States faces a potentially significant but longer-term geopolitical problem deriving from economic trends. The threat to the United States is the persistent decline in the middle class' standard of living, a problem that is reshaping the social order that has been in place since World War II and that, if it continues, poses a threat to American power.

Unemployment Hits Record High in Euro Zone

LONDON — Unemployment in the euro zone continued its relentless march higher in April, according to official data published Friday, hitting yet another record amid a prolonged recession and the lack of a coordinated response by policy makers.

AP Debate: Training youth key to rebuilding job market in wake of financial crisis

Training the youth for the challenges of a fast-changing world has to be central to any strategy to rebuild the job market following a financial crisis that’s wiped out millions of middle-class jobs over the past five years.

That was the central conclusion that emerged from the annual Associated Press debate at the World Economic Forum in the Swiss village of Davos, which focused on the need to build up skills for a changing economy.

The Crisis of the Middle Class and American Power

Last week I wrote about the crisis of unemployment in Europe. I received a great deal of feedback, with Europeans agreeing that this is the core problem and Americans arguing that the United States has the same problem, asserting that U.S. unemployment is twice as high as the government's official unemployment rate. My counterargument is that unemployment in the United States is not a problem in the same sense that it is in Europe because it does not pose a geopolitical threat. The United States does not face political disintegration from unemployment, whatever the number is. Europe might.

At the same time, I would agree that the United States faces a potentially significant but longer-term geopolitical problem deriving from economic trends. The threat to the United States is the persistent decline in the middle class' standard of living, a problem that is reshaping the social order that has been in place since World War II and that, if it continues, poses a threat to American power.

Should Central Banks Target Employment?

Kemal Derviş

WASHINGTON, DC – On December 12, US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke announced that the Fed will keep interest rates at close to zero until the unemployment rate falls to 6.5%, provided inflation expectations remain subdued. While the Fed’s governing statutes, unlike those of the European Central Bank, explicitly include a mandate to support employment, the announcement marked the first time that the Fed tied its interest-rate policy to a numerical employment target. It is a welcome breakthrough, and one that should be emulated by others – not least the ECB.

 

Central banks’ statutes differ in terms of the objectives that they set for monetary policy. All include price stability. Many add a reference to general economic conditions, including growth and employment or financial stability. Some give the central bank the authority to set an inflation target unilaterally; others stipulate coordination with the government in setting the target.

What unemployment? Here’s where life in Europe isn’t so bad.

When the words “jobs” and “Europe” are in the same sentence these days, it’s usually not good news. Unemployment in the euro zone hit a record high last month, with 11.4 percent, or 18.2 million people, out of work. More than half of younger workers in Spain and Greece are unemployed.

Frustrations over the state of the economy have given rise to violent far-right groups in Greece and protests over job cuts in Spain, including a recent strike by employees at the luxury Parador hotels, which are set in historic castles and palaces.

But for some European nations, the jobs picture is actually a little rosy.

A protester covers her head in a plastic bag, meant to show that austerity measures are suffocating Greeks during a union protest in Athens on Nov. 14, 2012. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) Click here for more photos of austerity in Europe.

Europe's youth job crisis

Youth unemployment rates in some EU countries are scandalously high. Many EU countries are hoping to copy the success of the German apprenticeship system. Although countries should be encouraged to learn from each other, there is no one-size-fits-all solution to the job crisis. And many measures will not bite until growth returns. 




Unemployment among young people has always been higher than general joblessness but the economic crisis has widened the gap further. According to Eurostat, 22 per cent of 15-24 year-olds in the EU are unemployed. In those countries hardest hit by the crisis, such as Greece and Spain, the rate is 50 per cent. 

US economy adds 171,000 new jobs

The US economy added 171,000 new jobs in October, which was much more than had been expected.

But the official figures from the Labor Department showed that the unemployment rate still rose to 7.9%, having fallen to 7.8% in September, as more workers resumed the search for jobs.

Only people who are currently looking for a job count as unemployed.

Unemployment is one of the key issues ahead of Tuesday's presidential election.

‘Fiscal cliff’ already hampering U.S. economy, report says

The “fiscal cliff” is still two months off, but the scheduled blast of tax hikes and spending cuts is already reverberating through the U.S. economy, hampering growth and, according to a new study, wiping out nearly 1 million jobs this year alone.

View Photo Gallery — The ‘fiscal cliff’ explained in charts: There has been a lot of talk about the “fiscal cliff.” But what is it? How will it affect your pocketbook? These charts address these questions and will help you understand why lawmakers want to reach a deal on taxes and spending to prevent us from falling off the cliff.

The report, scheduled for release Friday by the National Association of Manufacturers, predicts that the economic damage would deepen considerably if Congress fails to avert the cliff, destroying nearly 6 million jobs through 2014 and sending the unemployment rate soaring to near 12 percent.

Unemployment in Euro Zone at Record High

The euro zone’s jobless rate rose to record levels this summer, official data showed Monday, underscoring the pain inflicted by the slowing world economy and the euro crisis on citizens of the world’s largest market.

Unemployment in the 17-member euro zone rose to 11.4 percent in August, Eurostat, the statistical agency of the European Union reported from Luxembourg. The agency also revised up the figure for June and July to 11.4 percent from the previously reported 11.3 percent, already a record.