Each month the U.S. Department of Labor publishes a wide variety of statistics regarding employment, unemployment, workforce and other categories through their Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The September statistics by the BLS were published the first week of October, the third consecutive month of low employment. It was exciting for the public to hear that the rate of 5.1% is close to what is often considered ‘full employment.’ Government officials pat themselves on the back and report these wonderful ‘stats’ as a continuum of improving performance since the 2008 economic disaster.
What these superficial statistics don’t tell us is that work force participation rate has fallen to 62.4%. This means that as of September of this year, the labor force counted 251.3 million members. But of that number only 156.7 million people are participating in work or seeking a job. The result is that 94.6 million qualifying workers have dropped out of the work force. That means that instead of unemployment being at 5.1%, the actual number is at least 40%; deliberate government disparity. Only a small proportion of U.S. citizens are statistical gurus and therefore, the real numbers get breezed over.
According to the published statistics, the active labor force of 156.7 million workers is comprised of 148.8 million with jobs and 7.9 million looking for work or between jobs. In addition to the above statistics, an additional 10.8 million would-be workers are on disability. This tells us that there are over 100 million people not working but receiving ‘paychecks’ signed by the Secretary of The Treasury or other high level government-appointed fiduciaries.
In order to sign those paychecks, government officials are tapping into vast sums of money that were once your income tax payments. If there are inadequate funds in that cache of cash, money is printed, called debt and sold as ‘Treasury Securities.’ Foreign nations own more than $6 trillion or about 1/3rd of our national debt of more than $18 trillion.
Drilling down into the BLS numbers we find that although overall unemployment is 5.1%, Black unemployment is now 9.2%; 80% higher than the average. Hispanic unemployment stands at 6.4% and Asians apparently are seeking and finding jobs because their unemployment rate is just 3.6%. Although the President has repeatedly declared support for Black workers and families, evidence of performance is AWOL.
According to a recent U.S. Census report, in 2009 there were 38.8 million (12.9%) citizens living below the poverty level of 2009 population of 301 million U.S. citizens. By 2014, 46.7 million U.S. citizens (14.8%) of the population of 315.8 million were living ‘below poverty.’ Poverty has risen by 12% during the Obama administration according to census reports.
With a Black population of 38 million in 2009, almost 9.4 million (24.7%) were living below the poverty level. By 2014, Blacks numbered 41.1 million while 10.8 million (26.3%) were living ‘in the dismal basement.’ The rate of living in near destitution for Blacks remains almost double the average of U.S. citizens who dwell in abject poverty. There are 5.5 million single Black Moms living below the poverty level. As in many other pursuits Mr. Obama’s fairy tale narrative doesn’t correspond with reality. But apparently his words fit cordially into the ballot box.
An action that could improve employment for minorities is repeal of the Davis-Bacon Act, the 84 year-old law that was originated when NY Congressman Robert Bacon was alerted to a contractor employing Blacks to build a hospital in his district. The law continues to affect minorities and could save more than $1.5 billion for taxpayers per year according to a 2013 estimate by the Congressional Budget Office.
According to Thomas Sowell, the renowned (retired) Economics Professor at Cal Berkley and now a Fellow at the Hoover Institution is convinced that constant pressure on increasing the minimum wage hurts minorities inordinately. According to Sowell, if the 1981 minimum wage were increased proportionate to inflation today it would be $8.79.
Jobs exist today that didn’t exist a few years ago; jobs that existed a decade ago have disappeared. There are unfilled jobs throughout our economy. Mr. President; are Black votes more important than Black Lives?
– Dick Baynton