January 11, 2017 The Skanner Page 9
News
Obama’s Final Jobs Report: Big Pay Gain, Slower Hiring
By CHRISTOPHER S. RUGABER
AP Economics Writer
WASHINGTON — Americans’ pay-
checks rose in December at the fastest
pace in more than seven years as steady
hiring and low unemployment led
some businesses to pay more to attract
and keep workers.
Employers added 156,000 jobs, a de-
cent total that shows that moderate hir-
ing remains sustainable 7½ years after
the recovery from the Great Recession
began. The report provided the last
major snapshot of the economy Presi-
dent-elect Donald Trump will inherit
from President Barack Obama.
The figures also reflect the job mar-
ket’s vast improvement from the deep
layoffs and surging unemployment
rate that prevailed when Obama took
office in January 2009. Last month, the
jobless rate was just 4.7 percent, up
from a nine-year low of 4.6 percent in
“
at any point since the recession,” noted
Jed Kolko, chief economist at the job site
Indeed. “However, Trump will inherit
an economy that’s riding high but faces
long-term challenges. Fewer adults are
at work than before the recession, man-
ufacturing is lagging despite an uptick
in December and the acceleration in
wage growth, while great for workers,
could raise inflation fears.”
Hourly pay jumped 2.9 percent from
a year earlier, a welcome change from
the sluggish wage growth that has been
a longstanding weak spot in the eco-
nomic recovery.
Many companies will likely raise
prices to offset the cost of raises, which
in turn would lift inflation. If inflation
accelerates, the Federal Reserve may
raise short-term interest rates at a fast-
er pace this year.
“Pay raises, while good for workers,
represent cost increases for firms,” An-
drew Chamberlain, chief economist at
AP PHOTO/SUSAN WALSH, FILE
Employers added 156,000 jobs in December, but hiring overall slowed in 2016
In this Dec. 15, 2009, file photo, President Barack Obama speaks during a visit to Home Depot in Alexandria,
Va. Obama came in amid horrendous recession, since then has had 75 months straight months of job
growth. The job market has changed in those eight years.
cent. That’s the lowest level since April
2008.
Though the un-
employment
rate
has returned to its
pre-recession level,
the proportion of
Americans in their
prime
working
years who are either
working or looking
for work remains far below where it
was before the recession began. When
people stop looking for a job, they’re no
longer counted as unemployed. Those
“dropouts” have contributed to a de-
clining unemployment rate over the
Trump will inherit an economy that’s riding high but fac-
es long-term challenges. Fewer adults are at work than
before the recession, manufacturing is lagging despite an
uptick in December and the acceleration in wage growth,
while great for workers, could raise inflation fears
November, but far below the painful
10 percent peak of October 2009. Em-
ployers have added jobs for 75 straight
months — the longest streak on record.
Even so, the job market remains a
mixed picture. Hiring slowed last year,
with the economy adding 2.2 million
jobs, the smallest full-year gain since
2012. Job growth averaged 180,000 a
month — enough to lower the unem-
ployment rate over time — but down
from 229,000 in 2015.
And many people, particularly men
without a college education, have suf-
fered as the job market has shifted away
from blue collar work in manufactur-
ing and mining toward industries that
either require higher skills, like infor-
mation technology, or that pay less,
such as health care. The proportion of
men in their prime working years who
either have a job or are looking for one
has continued to drop.
In addition, the number of part-time
workers who would prefer full-time
work, while declining, remains well
above its pre-recession level.
Those weak spots will likely chal-
lenge Trump as much as they did his
predecessor.
“More people are back at work than
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employment website Glassdoor. “The
Fed pays attention to that.”
Paul Saginaw, co-founder of Zinger-
man’s, a mail order food store and deli
based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, says he
thinks hiring has become more com-
petitive in the past several years. The
company, which has 740 permanent
employees, is staffing up to open a new
restaurant.
In Ann Arbor, home of the University
of Michigan, “everybody’s hiring most
of the time,” Saginaw said. “It’s an em-
ployees’ market right now.”
Hiring last month was led by the
health care sector, which added 43,000
jobs, mostly in doctors’ offices and hos-
pitals. Manufacturing resumed hiring
after four months of job cuts, adding
17,000.
Restaurants and bars gained 30,000
positions. Transportation and ware-
housing, fueled by online shopping
during the holiday season, added
15,000. On the other hand, construction
and mining companies shed jobs.
A broader gauge of unemployment,
which includes the part-time workers
who would like full-time work as well
as people who have stopped looking for
jobs, dipped to 9.2 percent from 9.3 per-
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past eight years.
Trump spotlighted that trend as a
shortcoming in Obama’s record and
charged during the election campaign
that the unemployment rate was a
“hoax.” He now faces the steep chal-
lenge of bringing back those who have
left the workforce.
Since the election, Trump has suc-
cessfully pressured several manufac-
turers to keep some jobs in the United
States, including Ford and United Tech-
nologies’ air conditioning unit Carri-
er. Even so, and despite last month’s
increase in factory jobs, manufactur-
ing employment declined by 45,000 in
2016.
We honor the many
accomplishments of
African Americans.
It is our primary goal as a labor union to better the lives of all people working
in the building trades through advocacy, civil demonstration, and the long-held
belief that workers deserve a “family wage” - fair pay for an honest day’s work.
A family wage, and the benefits that go with it, not only strengthens families, but also
allows our communities to become stronger, more cohesive, and more
responsive to their citizens’ needs.
Our family wage agenda reflects our commitment to people working in the building
trades, and to workers everywhere. In this small way, we are doing our part to help
people achieve the American Dream. This dream that workers can hold dear
regardless of race, color, national origin, gender, creed, or religious beliefs.
Pacific Northwest Regional Council of Carpenters
Representing more than 5,000 construction workers in Oregon State.
Do you want to know more about becoming a Union carpenter?
Go to www.NWCarpenters.org
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