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Home › Money

The Greatest Depression | 03/06/2009 1:55 pm

12.5 Million+ Americans Out of Work

Employers shed 651,000 jobs last month, pushing unemployment to a 25-year high of 8.1 percent.
By The Staff at wowOwow
© Getty Images

With employers cutting another 651,000 jobs to cope with weaker sales and falling revenue, the U.S. unemployment rate rose to 8.1 percent last month, its highest level in a quarter century.

All told, more than 12.5 million Americans are now out of work, an increase of 4.4 million since the recession officially began in December 2007, the government reported Friday.

Some of the hardest-hit job sectors in February were construction, manufacturing, retail and financial services, while health care and education remained steady.

The report also shows that recent layoffs might have targeted more men than women. Last month, the number of men holding jobs dropped to 65.8 percent, from 66.1 percent in January. By contrast, the number of women holding jobs dropped to 55.2 percent from 55.3 percent.

Long-term unemployment is also rising. Nearly three million Americans have now been out of work for at least six months, up from 1.4 million during the same period last year, the report said.

Read more about: Employers, Employment, Jobs, Layoffs, News, Recession, Unemployment

11 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

S.J. Morgan
make me cry……!   Such a helpless feeing!
By S.J. Morgan on 03/06/2009 4:27 pm
Belinda Joy
I must admit all of this bad economic news makes me want to morph into my Scarlet O”Hara mode of thought “Fiddle-dee-dee…I don’t want to think of that today, I’ll think of it tomorrow!” I think it’s time for me to take a break from politics, money and crime for awhile. It’s becoming a bit to much to handle. And I’m not even directly affected yet!
By Belinda Joy on 03/06/2009 5:17 pm
S.J. Morgan
Imagine how hard it is on those who have……nice of you to take the attitude of "I”ll  think about it tomorrow"…you sound like our President.  Until then let’s party on the tax fools dime!
By S.J. Morgan on 03/07/2009 11:13 am
Dee Toma

If Aldin lamps were real, I would wish that this country could return to 1 income households. Either man or woman, one works for the paycheck and the other works at making a house a home.

By Dee Toma on 03/08/2009 1:04 pm
Suzanne Frazier
8% unemployment is hard.  But we have 92% of the work force employed. I hope that those who are employed can help those who are not….We are all in this together.  I try each day to do something to support those who are feeling the frustration and fear of not being able to provide for their family.  Pretty scary.  But there are enough employed (92%) to help those who need help right now.  And for most of the unemployed as soon as they find a job they will be a lot happier and will be back "taking care of business".  WE all can be proactive.
By Suzanne Frazier on 03/08/2009 7:35 pm
Steve Douglass
As the country suffers, this is the change they voted in http://www.worldnetdaily.com/?pageId=90945
By Steve Douglass on 03/08/2009 7:53 pm
Republican 4Life
Mr. Steve, please, please, post some of the photos of you picketing the White House during the Reagan years over the issue of entertaining at the White House !!!  We always love to see more of you anyway!!!
By Republican 4Life on 03/09/2009 1:54 am
Diana T

Tom Friedman wrote a commentary in the NYTimes yesterday that I believe puts this whole mess into perspective.  We’ve become over saturated, …."taking a system and operating past its capacity and driving it faster and harder"….He is calling it The Great Disruption.  I think this is the most important thing to keep in mind as we go through this.  And, Friedman is correct when he says that there’ll come a day when our grandkids will ask "what was it like, what did you do?"  I want to be able to be remembered as someone who did more than wring my hands and gripe.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/08/opinion/08friedman.html?em=&pagewanted=print

By Diana T on 03/09/2009 9:40 am
Dee Toma
My 2 sisters both over retirement age and they are still part of the workforce. I have urged them to quit their jobs to make room for an unemployed person. They both have more than enough money to live a more than comfortable life style. The main reason they continue to work is they are afraid to stay home, they say they would be lost without the routine and social contact. Sad what they have really lost is their ability to be independent and adventurous.     
By Dee Toma on 03/09/2009 1:03 pm