WSJ: Continuing Jobless Claims Near a Low, and That May Not Be Good

What has been obvious for over 6 years is now getting more attention.  Really? 

This economic recovery has been weak, selective, and punishing to many millions of Americans who for 6 years have remained painfully aware of what they have missed.  They know what is happening and not happening.

Real economic challenges remain for those Americans out of the workforce who suffer primarily from two conditions:

1. Being poorly educated
2. Remaining left out after downsizing stopped and stayed stuck at lower downsized levels.

Imagine people who rode an elevator down that eventually stopped, but didn't go back up.

What should those people do who are left at a lower level, especially if the typical set of stairs is gone?

The way up is missing for millions of Americans in this economy!

Also, what has happened to small business formation these last few years? 

It should be clear that more government is not an answer.  And it should be clear that the poorly educated suffer because of an incompetent and politically motivated government that runs most schools.  PB
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From the Wall Street Journal online:

A historically low share of unemployed Americans is tapping unemployment benefits, a development that on its face seems good but one that may be masking the degree of slack in the labor market.

...even in an improving labor market—with the number of unemployed at the lowest level since the recession ended—an unusually large number of Americans are stuck in a rut of long-term unemployment that could derail their prospects to find new work.

“We’ve seen millions of Americans who want to work become discouraged and drop out of the labor force,” said Claire McKenna, policy analyst at the National Employment Law Project.

Indeed, many Americans have slipped off benefit rolls and stopped looking for work.

As a result, they may be missing from key gauges of joblessness.

That hole has drawn concern from Federal Reserve officials and other policy makers given the longer-term risks to the U.S. economy.

People who are unemployed and without benefits are increasingly likely to drop from the labor force entirely, research has shown, converting a potentially productive worker into one with limited capacity to contribute to economic output...

Whether people who lost jobs attempt to find new ones is a key consideration for Fed policy makers assessing the health of the labor market.

The unemployment rate fell to 5.5% in February, the lowest reading since May 2008.  The data suggest the economy is moving closer to full employment, putting the Fed in position this year to raise short-term interest rates from near zero for the first time since 2008.

Some officials are worried that the share of Americans participating in the labor force remains near the lowest levels since the 1970s.

The low numbers could be a sign of deeper slack that limits stronger wage gains, keeping inflation below the Fed’s target even longer.

In addition, the share of Americans unemployed for more than six months or stuck in part-time jobs remains elevated.

The Fed this week showed it remained cautious about the health of the labor market. “Considerable progress clearly has been achieved, but room for further improvement in the labor market continues,” Fed Chairwoman Janet Yellen said Wednesday after a two-day meeting.
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Link: http://www.wsj.com/articles/continuing-jobless-claims-near-a-low-and-that-may-not-be-good-1426793681