Jobless rate falls to 8.6%, sending mixed message on economy

The article, “Jobless rate falls to 8.6%, sending mixed message on economy,” discusses how although the data is showing slow improvements in the job market, a portion is due to a reduction of the labor force. People have become discouraged and have stopped looking for work. The majority of these people are women and a large portion were public school teachers that have been laid off because of budget cuts. These women’s occupations reflect what is known as “pink collar jobs” and shows that it may have not been crucial for them to work to maintain their standard of living if they are able to stop looking for work. In the past, women would enter the labor force when their husbands didn’t make enough to support the family but would stop working as soon as their economic or maternal situations turned around. It is interesting to note how women are the majority of those being forced to exit the labor force. It is still true that women are compensated less than their male counterparts, often for the same work. Besides these subtle signals of gender inequality in the work force, employment indicators are promising. Lee, author of this article, further reports that evidence shows “consumer spending, manufacturing and exports, and business investment and confidence all have edged higher since summer” all leading to a healthier economy. Through the use of both monetary and fiscal policy, the government has been able to drive down interest rates and increase demand for goods stimulating the economy.