The U.S. Jobs Market – The Ups and Downs and Real Numbers
By Sklar & Associates In General On May 7, 2012
Unemployment figures were released on Friday (5/4/2012) for April 2012 and the market fell as well as the moods of many economists. However the real story behind the numbers is more complex.
The overall unemployment number for April 2012 is 8.1% and the unemployment figure for college graduates is 4% down from 4.5% in April 2011. High School Graduates now have an unemployment number of 7.9% down from 9.7% same time last year.
In April 2012, retailers added over 29,000 jobs, restaurants and bars added 20,000 employees and temp agencies hired 21,000 and manufacturing added 16,000. However government jobs declined again.
And there are jobs that go unfilled because the openings do not match the skill set of the unemployed. Education is more and more important and the countless articles debating the high price of education add to this debate. However the numbers speak for themselves – 4% unemployment for college graduates vs 8.1% on a national level.
It is more and more critical that candidates continue to receive an education and vocational training in order to find a job in today’s economy. We have requests for digital media professionals as well as digital analytics. And we are seeing jobs all over the U.S.