Vital Signs Chart: Still 3 Job Seekers for Every Opening

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Last edited Fri Apr 12, 2013, 02:11 PM - Edit history (1)

Vital Signs Chart: Still 3 Job Seekers for Every Opening

April 10, 2013, 9:04 AM.

By Sudeep Reddy

Job openings reached a postrecession high in February. Employers had 3.9 million positions open, up 11% from a year earlier and the most since May 2008. With 12 million Americans unemployed in February, there were 3.1 job seekers for every opening. There were 6.7 job seekers per opening in July 2009 when the recovery started and 1.8 when the recession began in December 2007.

[kestrel91316]

1. Three? THREE???? ROFLMFAO.

Whenever I place an ad for an assistant (P/T with some vet experience) I get at least 50 applicants.

[Demeter]

2. That just means there's a sh88load of jobs that have NO takers, I fear

because who wants a sh88 job? Especially if the one or two or three jobs he/she has is already awful?

[jtuck004]

3. Don't ya love how they try to make it look better than it is, and it still looks like shit?

This, btw, leaves out table A:38, one of my personal favorites, here -

HOUSEHOLD DATA
NOT SEASONALLY ADJUSTED
A-38. Persons not in the labor force by desire and availability for work, age, and sex


Line 3 - Want a job(1)

Mar 2012
6,041

Mar 2013
6,399

That's another 6.3 million beyond what is in that chart, and worse than last year. Makes the unemployment rate look better by moving them off the U3 numbers.