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At 162,000, the July jobs report fell short of expectations and well shy of “whisper” numbers for payroll figures above 200,000. In addition, job tallies were revised down for May and June and average hourly earnings fell 0.1% in July, the first decline since October.
The data disappointed Wall Street economists but are consistent with the trends Dan Alpert, managing partner at Westwood Capital, cited in a recent report: “The fact is that the U.S. employment situation is more of a wounded beast than a bull,” he writes.
Related: Jobs & President Obama: A Close Look At His Record
According to Alpert’s analysis, 69% of the jobs created in the second quarter – and 57% in the first half of 2013 – were in the three lowest-paying sectors of the economy: retail trade, administrative and waste services, and leisure and hospitality. These jobs, which account for 33% of all private sector jobs, pay an average of $15.80 per hour.
“What you’re seeing is now the spreading of low wage growth,” he says, noting those trends continued in Friday's July jobs report. “Really we have become a nation of hamburger flippers, Wal-Mart sales associates, barmaids, checkout people and other people working at very low wages.”
The growth of low-wage jobs helps explain why the majority of Americans continue to believe the economy is in recession, despite a falling unemployment rate – now down to a four-year low of 7.4% – a record-setting stock market rally and a rebound in the housing market."
So with all the money the feds have spent propping up the housing market, and on green job creation, and health care. Where are the jobs? Where is the growth? Have we even hit the bottom? I am just not seeing the results in our recovery. Seems like the stock market is up, and that's about it. What if it falls again, what will we have left to do. The jobs that seem to be created are lower paying than before, and or part time. So has spending our way out of debt started to work yet? When will it? How about infrastructure? Are our roads any better than before? Are our cities building new offices and updating buildings, or are they crumbling due to lack of care and money. How many more cities are going to go bankrupt?
