May: US UE-rate remains stable, 217.000 jobs added

[Tender Branson]

The U.S. created 217,000 nonfarm jobs in May, the Labor Department said Friday, largely in line with Wall Street’s expectations.

Hiring has topped 200,000 for four straight months, the first time that’s happened in almost 15 years. The robust increase in hiring in May follows a slightly revised 282,000 gain in new jobs in April, 203,000 in March and 222,000 in February.

The U.S. has now recovered the 8.7 million jobs lost after the 2007-2009 downturn, but it took more than six years to surpass the nation’s prior peak of 138.25 million workers. Not since the Great Depression in the 1930s has it taken so long to recover all the jobs lost from a recession.

The unemployment rate held steady at 6.3%, following a big drop in April that was the largest one-month decline in 31 years. More people entered the labor market in May in search of work.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-gains-217000-new-jobs-in-may-2014-06-06

[Maxwell]

For once, it looks like all good news. Glad to see the job market coming back.

[AggregateDemand]

It's not bad news, but the falling unemployment rate is still being driven by labor force participation at 36 year lows. It's just more 20-somethings, staying in school and accumulating debt, which hurts economic output and destabilizes retirement entitlements.

[GaussLaw]

I see information is -5k jobs.  Is this month an anomaly or is life getting harder for compsci majors?

[Nhoj]

I see information is -5k jobs.  Is this month an anomaly or is life getting harder for compsci majors?

Information includes the publishing industry and it looks like costumer service. So it probably isnt so much the techies struggling, as it is costumer service and perhaps newspapers.

[Person Man]

I see information is -5k jobs.  Is this month an anomaly or is life getting harder for compsci majors?

Information includes the publishing industry and it looks like costumer service. So it probably isnt so much the techies struggling, as it is costumer service and perhaps newspapers.

I sure hope not. I am re-graduating from college with a Comp-Sci degree in December. The only reason I did that and didn't go for a Ph.D. in PolySigh or Econ was because Software Engineer is the only rapidly hiring high-pay job available right now, at least according to the BLS-OOH, payscale.com and ONET.  Everyone who graduated from my department last year were making 50-80K for a first job. At least I can get my Ph.D. in something else if this dries up.

OTOH, I know someone who graduated last year with his Co.Jo. degree this time last year. The sheepskin just hangs on the wall in his parents' basement in Denver. The only real thing you can do with that anymore is Law School or Grad School...maybe you could get paid to be a travel blogger but how do you get $20,000 to  backpack across Europe and the Orient(like this bikini model/surfer who had Net Geo parents) for a year unless you have millionaire parents?

[GaussLaw]

I see information is -5k jobs.  Is this month an anomaly or is life getting harder for compsci majors?

Information includes the publishing industry and it looks like costumer service. So it probably isnt so much the techies struggling, as it is costumer service and perhaps newspapers.

I sure hope not. I am re-graduating from college with a Comp-Sci degree in December. The only reason I did that and didn't go for a Ph.D. in PolySigh or Econ was because Software Engineer is the only rapidly hiring high-pay job available right now, at least according to the BLS-OOH, payscale.com and ONET.  Everyone who graduated from my department last year were making 50-80K for a first job. At least I can get my Ph.D. in something else if this dries up.

OTOH, I know someone who graduated last year with his Co.Jo. degree this time last year. The sheepskin just hangs on the wall in his parents' basement in Denver. The only real thing you can do with that anymore is Law School or Grad School...maybe you could get paid to be a travel blogger but how do you get $20,000 to  backpack across Europe and the Orient(like this bikini model/surfer who had Net Geo parents) for a year unless you have millionaire parents?

CompSci major seems weird.  I've seen sources citing recent graduates' unemployment being anywhere from 5.6% to 8.7%. 


http://www.actuarialoutpost.com/actuarial_discussion_forum/showthread.php?t=271416

The good news for you is that there are more jobs than there are qualified candidates.  Compare this to actuarial science, a career field I'm looking into possibly going back to college for, which has a 0.0% unemployment rate but an applicants:jobs ratio of 4:1.  I'd like my odds better in computer science. 

I am still baffled by the relatively high unemployment rate(often matching humanities majors) by the math/computer science field.  The crappy "information systems" major is partly to blame(too easy, often awarded by poorly-ranked institutions & for-profits, no programming or intense quantitative skills needed), but even the computer science degree has that high rate.  My personal suspicion is that a lot of those computer science degree-holders are doing freelance work or the like + they interview horribly due to poor social skills.

[Person Man]

I see information is -5k jobs.  Is this month an anomaly or is life getting harder for compsci majors?

Information includes the publishing industry and it looks like costumer service. So it probably isnt so much the techies struggling, as it is costumer service and perhaps newspapers.

I sure hope not. I am re-graduating from college with a Comp-Sci degree in December. The only reason I did that and didn't go for a Ph.D. in PolySigh or Econ was because Software Engineer is the only rapidly hiring high-pay job available right now, at least according to the BLS-OOH, payscale.com and ONET.  Everyone who graduated from my department last year were making 50-80K for a first job. At least I can get my Ph.D. in something else if this dries up.

OTOH, I know someone who graduated last year with his Co.Jo. degree this time last year. The sheepskin just hangs on the wall in his parents' basement in Denver. The only real thing you can do with that anymore is Law School or Grad School...maybe you could get paid to be a travel blogger but how do you get $20,000 to  backpack across Europe and the Orient(like this bikini model/surfer who had Net Geo parents) for a year unless you have millionaire parents?

CompSci major seems weird.  I've seen sources citing recent graduates' unemployment being anywhere from 5.6% to 8.7%. 


http://www.actuarialoutpost.com/actuarial_discussion_forum/showthread.php?t=271416

The good news for you is that there are more jobs than there are qualified candidates.  Compare this to actuarial science, a career field I'm looking into possibly going back to college for, which has a 0.0% unemployment rate but an applicants:jobs ratio of 4:1.  I'd like my odds better in computer science. 

I am still baffled by the relatively high unemployment rate(often matching humanities majors) by the math/computer science field.  The crappy "information systems" major is partly to blame(too easy, often awarded by poorly-ranked institutions & for-profits, no programming or intense quantitative skills needed), but even the computer science degree has that high rate.  My personal suspicion is that a lot of those computer science degree-holders are doing freelance work or the like + they interview horribly due to poor social skills.

Information Sciences seems to be a good degree for when you already have a job and want to move up. For example, if you work in the business office in a hospital and are a coding manager, you might want to go back for Information Sciences so that you can get into middle or upper management.

At this point, I am doing free-lance type of stuff for this small company in Cheyenne. I'm optimistic about finding something full time.

[GaussLaw]

I see information is -5k jobs.  Is this month an anomaly or is life getting harder for compsci majors?

Information includes the publishing industry and it looks like costumer service. So it probably isnt so much the techies struggling, as it is costumer service and perhaps newspapers.

I sure hope not. I am re-graduating from college with a Comp-Sci degree in December. The only reason I did that and didn't go for a Ph.D. in PolySigh or Econ was because Software Engineer is the only rapidly hiring high-pay job available right now, at least according to the BLS-OOH, payscale.com and ONET.  Everyone who graduated from my department last year were making 50-80K for a first job. At least I can get my Ph.D. in something else if this dries up.

OTOH, I know someone who graduated last year with his Co.Jo. degree this time last year. The sheepskin just hangs on the wall in his parents' basement in Denver. The only real thing you can do with that anymore is Law School or Grad School...maybe you could get paid to be a travel blogger but how do you get $20,000 to  backpack across Europe and the Orient(like this bikini model/surfer who had Net Geo parents) for a year unless you have millionaire parents?

CompSci major seems weird.  I've seen sources citing recent graduates' unemployment being anywhere from 5.6% to 8.7%. 


http://www.actuarialoutpost.com/actuarial_discussion_forum/showthread.php?t=271416

The good news for you is that there are more jobs than there are qualified candidates.  Compare this to actuarial science, a career field I'm looking into possibly going back to college for, which has a 0.0% unemployment rate but an applicants:jobs ratio of 4:1.  I'd like my odds better in computer science. 

I am still baffled by the relatively high unemployment rate(often matching humanities majors) by the math/computer science field.  The crappy "information systems" major is partly to blame(too easy, often awarded by poorly-ranked institutions & for-profits, no programming or intense quantitative skills needed), but even the computer science degree has that high rate.  My personal suspicion is that a lot of those computer science degree-holders are doing freelance work or the like + they interview horribly due to poor social skills.

Information Sciences seems to be a good degree for when you already have a job and want to move up. For example, if you work in the business office in a hospital and are a coding manager, you might want to go back for Information Sciences so that you can get into middle or upper management.

At this point, I am doing free-lance type of stuff for this small company in Cheyenne. I'm optimistic about finding something full time.

Perhaps, but IS(informational systems) is horrible as a main major for traditional college students with no work experience.  Its unemployment rate is around 15%, just pathetic.

[Beet]

More Americans are working today than ever before.

[MurrayBannerman]

More Americans are working today than ever before.

More people exist in this world than ever before.

[Person Man]

More Americans are working today than ever before.

More people exist in this world than ever before.

Does this mean that lines are longer today than ever before?

[eric82oslo]

Here's the May unemployment rate in each of the 50 states + D.C.:

Rhode Island: 8.2%
Nevada: 7.9% (huge drop since peak)
Kentucky: 7.7%
Mississippi: 7.7%
California: 7.6%
Illinois: 7.5%
Michigan: 7.5% (huge drop since peak)
D.C.: 7.5%
Georgia: 7.2%
New Jersey: 6.8%
Arizona: 6.8%
New York: 6.7%
North Carolina: 6.4%
Tennessee: 6.4%
Arkansas: 6.4%

US average: 6.3%

Florida: 6.3%

Washington: 6.1%
Delaware: 5.9%
Colorado: 5.8%
Maine: 5.7%
Wisconsin: 5.7%
Indiana: 5.7%
Maryland: 5.6%
Massachusetts: 5.6%
Pennsylvania: 5.6%
Ohio: 5.5%
South Carolina: 5.3%
Virginia: 5.1%
Texas: 5.1%
Idaho: 4.9%
Louisiana: 4.9%
Kansas: 4.8%
Montana: 4.6%
Oklahoma: 4.6%
Minnesota: 4.6%
New Hampshire: 4.4%
Hawaii: 4.4%
Wyoming: 3.8%
South Dakota: 3.8%
Nebraska: 3.6%
Utah: 3.6%
Vermont: 3.3%
North Dakota: 2.6%

Source: http://www.bls.gov/news.release/laus.nr0.htm

Democratic states with lowest unemployment rates: Vermont, Hawaii, New Hampshire, Minnesota
Republican states with highest unemployment rates: Kentucky, Mississippi, Georgia, Arizona