Unemployment rate up to 9.8%.

Unsurprising – at least, unsurprising to me yet not good:

WASHINGTON (AP) — The unemployment rate rose to 9.8 percent in September as employers cut more jobs than expected, evidence that the longest recession since the 1930s is still inflicting widespread pain.

And here’s the really cheery news:

If laid-off workers who have settled for part-time work or have given up looking for new jobs are included, the unemployment rate rose to 17 percent, the highest on records dating from 1994.

See the raw numbers here. I’m starting to notice the little details of higher unemployment, mostly in retail situations. It can be summed up as “customer service is generally better, when you can track somebody down to give you some.” Couple that with the indicators of a sour economy (if you do your own food shopping, you’ve noticed the problems with the produce aisle in your local supermarket; if you don’t, go ask somebody who does) and I’m not quite as cheery this morning as I could be.

Moe Lane

Crossposted to RedState.

One thought on “Unemployment rate up to 9.8%.”

  1. Fear of Unemployment Dragging Down Economy

    I believe the fear of unemployment is THE factor keeping this economy from recovering. I know there are those in the Administration and among the various talking heads that say the economy is now recovering but I just don’t see it. I do believe we have reached a bottom, at least for now. I also believe that those in Washington do not fully understand the anxiety out here and how it is contributing to the lack of a recovery.

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