Jobseekers will speak to recruiters on Friday, September 6th, 2024 at the New York Public Library’s annual Bronx Job Fair & Expo at the Bronx Library Center in the Bronx area of New York.
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Unemployment rates for black men skyrocketed in January, as the number of people looking for jobs increased, according to data released Friday by the Labor Department.
In January, black workers were considered to have an edge in unemployment rates higher than 6.2% from 6.1% the previous month. This trend has beenaring the country’s overall unemployment rate, falling from 4.1% in December to 4.0% in January. Asian Americans were the only demographic where the unemployment rate rose from 3.5% to 3.7%.
Meanwhile, unemployment rates for white and Hispanic workers fell from the previous month in January, following the overall trend. For the former, the decline was from 3.6% to 3.5%. In the latter case, it fell from 5.1% to 4.8%.
However, black men experienced the biggest monthly surge in unemployment rates, with unemployment rates rising from 5.6% to 6.9%. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate was stable at 5.4% for black women.
Hispanic men saw unemployment rates remained stable at 4.0%, but female counterparts’ unemployment rates fell from 5.3% to 4.5%. Additionally, the unemployment rate among white men fell from 3.3% to 3.1%, slightly down from 3.4% for white women. The breakdown of data by gender was not readily available to Asian Americans.
The surge in unemployment rates for black male workers certainly appear to be on the surface, but the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics made several changes to its population management and research tools in January. Gould, Senior Economist at the Institute for Economic Policy Research. Gould also believes there could be a surge in standard data volatility.
“I think we need to look at the months of that elevation, not just the blip of data. And yet, “The simple fact that it’s far higher than the other groups is systematic in itself. It’s a problem.”
Gould added that part of the rise in unemployment among black men was due to the fact that more cohorts took part in the job market in January.
Last month, labor participation rates (the proportion of those employed or actively seeking jobs) rose from 62.5% to 62.6%.
Among black workers, the rate rose from 62.4% to 62.5%. This percentage jumped from 68.2% for black men to 69%, and slightly increased from 62.4% for black women to 62.5%.
“When unemployment rates rise, but there are also increased participation, it often means that people are either more optimistic or come back to the labour market where they are looking for jobs,” Gould said. added.
Among white workers, labor participation rates rose from 62.2% to 62.3%. Within Asian workers, participation rose from 64.3% to 64.7%, and slipped from 67.5% to 66.8% among Hispanic workers.
– Gabriel Cortez of CNBC contributed to this report.
