The nation’s unemployment fell slightly to 6.7 percent in November.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today that the uptick in jobs reflects the “continued resumption of economic activity that had been curtailed due to the coronavirus pandemic and efforts to contain it.”
The job numbers came in below economic forecasts of gains of more than 400,000. There are growing worries that the effects of programs like the Payroll Protection Program are wearing off. The PPP pumped $1.5 billion into the Delaware economy.
Employers are now working on converting the PPP loans into grants but face challenges that include the IRS’s adverse tax ruling. The program was designed to keep people on the payroll during the pandemic but has been criticized for not aiding enough small and/or employers.
In Delaware, applications close today for the final round of the DE Relief Grant program that is slated to allocate $100 million to businesses and nonprofits. Funding for the program under the federal CARES Act expires at the end of 2020.
The federal bureau acknowledged that the “pace of improvement in the labor market has moderated in recent months. In November, notable job gains occurred in transportation and warehousing, professional and business services, and health care. Employment declined in government and retail trade,” the report stated. Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 245,000 in November.
Delaware saw a sharp drop in its jobless rate to 5.6 percent in October.
The November unemployment rate for Delaware will be released around Dec. 20. See the story below.
The number of unemployed persons, at 10.7 million, continued to trend downward in November but is 4.9 million higher than in February.
Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rate for adult women (6.1 percent)
declined in November. The jobless rates for adult men (6.7 percent), teenagers (14.0
percent), Whites (5.9 percent), Blacks (10.3 percent), Asians (6.7 percent), and
Hispanics (8.4 percent) showed little or no change.
Among the unemployed, the number of persons on temporary layoff decreased by 441,000
in November to 2.8 million. This measure is down considerably from the high of 18.1
million in April but is 2.0 million higher than its February level. The number of
permanent job losers, at 3.7 million, was about unchanged in November but is 2.5
million higher than in February.
The labor force participation rate edged down to 61.5 percent in November; this is 1.9
percentage points below its February level. The employment-population ratio, at 57.3
percent changed little over the month but is 3.8 percentage points lower than in
February.
In November, the number of persons who usually work full time rose by 752,000 to 124.3
million, while the number of persons who usually work part-time decreased by 779,000
to 25.4 million, the bureau reported.
The number of persons employed part-time for economic reasons was about unchanged over
the month at 6.7 million but remains 2.3 million higher than the February level.
In the 11th month of the year, the number of persons not in the labor force who currently want a job increased by 448,000 to 7.1 million; this measure is 2.2 million higher than in
February. These individuals were not counted as unemployed because they were not
actively looking for work during the last 4 weeks or were unavailable to take a job.
