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8.1…because 341K Left the Work Force

Friday we hear the news that the new unemployment rate is 8.1%. Since Obama’s goal post is to get the number at least under 8% in time for election day, this number — on the surface — sounds relatively good, right?

The key thing to note (and the key thing to follow to see if it’s being mention by Obama) is that the reason for the lower unemployment rate is due to the fact that 342,000 left the labor force.

Payrolls only added 115,000  new jobs, the lowest number in six months. According to Bloomberg, it missed the target estimate of 160,000.

The unemployment rate was forecast to hold at 8.2 percent, according to the survey median. It has exceeded 8 percent since February 2009, the longest such stretch since monthly records began in 1948.

The participation rate, which indicates the share of working-age people in the labor force, fell to 63.6 percent, the lowest since December 1981, from 63.8 percent.

Bloomberg also posted the underemployment rate, which consists both of part-time workers who want full time work and those who have stopped working. That number is 14.5%.

The other facet of this jobs report is the rise in disability claims.

Overall, not a good picture for jobs and economy right now. Breitbart gave a quick synopsis on numbers and their theory as to why the Obama administration continues to focus on less critical matters, such as dogs and contraception. They are trying to deflect emotions away from the depressing job data which undermines Obama’s continued assertion that we are in a recovery and things are better.