Andover, Massachusetts July 1st 2010 — The bad news continues to roll in for the American economy this week. After the plunge in consumer confidence, the drop in May home sales, and continued fluctuations on Wall Street we are now faced with another rise in new jobless claims. This means that in 2 of the last 3 weeks we have seen a rise in the newly unemployed indicating we are much further from a full recovery than previously thought.
The initial jobless claims had been falling consistently since its peak in March of 2009 until January 2010. At this point it settled at above 450,000 per week, with very little movement from week to week. While it is good that we are not seeing a significant rise in the claims number it is discouraging to see that the US economy can not get below 450,000. Most analysts agree that until this number falls below 425,000 the prospects for an economic recovery and job gains remain bleak.
The reasons for the continued high levels of unemployment and particularly the 13,000 claims increase last week continue to be both local and national. The expiration of the housing credit and the following drop in new homes sales and construction led to job losses in those industries. The census jobs that helped the employment numbers in May continue to expire as the operation draws to a close so these people are back on the unemployment line. Another seasonal factor that increased the claims last week was the start of the summer vacation season in school districts nationwide. Many school employees were laid off at the end of the school year as budgets across the nation continue to be cut.
While this 13,000 claim increase is not dramatic, it comes at a particularly bad time for the country as unemployment benefits are running out for many long term unemployed. Congress has refused to extend benefits beyond 99 weeks and it will become increasingly difficult to keep this position if the job numbers don’t improve. More than a million have already lost their benefits and millions more face this same fate over the next 3 months. While 99 weeks seems long enough to most, the job market hasn’t brought back the 8.4 million jobs lost since 2007 so these people really can’t do much about their situation. It is definitely a situation that congress needs to address, as things do not appear to be improving.
So readers, what do you think of these numbers? Do you have any faith in government to fix this problem? What are you doing to make sure you remain employed during this tough time?
Preferred Financial Services is a debt reduction firm certified by the CFC (Center for Financial Certifications) and accredited by U.S.O.B.A. (United States Organizations for Bankruptcy Alternatives). Headquartered in Andover, Massachusetts, Preferred Financial Services has been a leader in the debt reduction industry since 2003. Preferred Financial Services has acquired some of the best experience in the industry over the past 7 years. In 2009 alone Preferred Financial Services reduced over $16.5 million worth of consumer debt for just $6.4 million, for a savings of about 60%- and over 2,900 accounts were settled on behalf of their clients.
For more information, please visit www.pfsdebtrelief.com or follow us on our blog at www.pfsdebtrelief.com/blog/ .
Contact:
Stephan Tavernini
stavernini@pfs1.net
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