The national unemployment report was bleak. We now have an official unemployment rate of 8.1%. But it’s also important to look at the Labor Department’s broader measure of unemployment, especially in today’s economy. It includes people who are unemployed and still looking for a job, people who are unemployed but have given up looking, and people who have part-time jobs but want full-time employment. That gauge stands at 14.8%.
And in Peoria, the losses keep adding up, as well. The Peoria Journal Star reports that the Workforce Network will report on Tuesday that more than 5,100 workers have lost their jobs in the Peoria area in the last five months.
Harder to keep that rosy view of the local economy. But it’s likely still better than the national economy.
Bill Poorman 