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Sonja Jackson, of Detroit, holding an Employment Guide while standing in line at  a job fair in Livonia, Mich., on Wednesday The unemployment rate has surpassed 10 percent for the first time since 1983 - and is expected to go higher.
Paul Sancya / Associated Press
Sonja Jackson, of Detroit, holding an Employment Guide while standing in line at a job fair in Livonia, Mich., on Wednesday The unemployment rate has surpassed 10 percent for the first time since 1983 - and is expected to go higher.
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Jobless rate tops 10.2%; few signs of hope

The numbers are remarkable: Nearly 16 million Americans are without work. The unemployment rate is 10.2 percent. And 190,000 more jobs were lost in October, an outcome worth cheering only when compared with the month-by-month carnage that has brought the nation its biggest employment crisis in 26 years.

There are some positive numbers in today's U.S. Labor Department jobs report for October: Temporary hiring increased; it's considered a leading indicator of permanent hiring to come. And overtime hours edged up 12 minutes, as companies added time, if not people.

But those numbers do little to counter the effect of an economy that added 558,000 people to the ranks of the unemployment last month and kept 5.6 million, more than a third of the unemployed, off the job for more than six months.

Among them is Janet Swift, of Northeast Philadelphia, a former human resource manager at Kraft Foods attending a breakfast this morning by the Philadelphia Human Resource Planning Society.

"I honestly believe there are glimmers of hope," said Swift, who, after 17 years of experience, has been out of work for nine months. Still no job, but after months of getting close to zero responses to her resumes, she is now getting some return calls.

"I've never experienced this in my life," she said. "It's going to take some time."

The Labor Department's report is the first since the government said last week that the economy grew at a 3.5 percent annual rate in the July-September quarter, the strongest signal yet that the economy is rebounding. But that isn't fast enough to spur rapid hiring, raising the specter of a jobless recovery.

Factoring in people who were too discouraged to job hunt, or who are working part time because they can't get full-time work, the unemployment rate was 17.5 percent in October.

President Obama called the new jobs report another illustration of why much more work is needed to spur business creation and consumer spending.

"I will not rest until all Americans who want work can find work," Obama said in mentioning legislation he is signing to provide additional unemployment benefits for laid-off workers.

"You need explosive growth to take the unemployment rate down," said Dan Greenhaus, economic strategist for New York-based investment firm Miller Tabak & Co.

Greenhaus said the economy soared by nearly 8 percent in 1983 after a steep recession, lowering the jobless rate by 2.5 percentage points that year. But, he said, the economy is unlikely to improve that fast this time, as consumers remain cautious and tight credit hinders businesses.

The reluctance to consume is reflected in the decline in retail employment. Nearly 40,000 positions were cut last month, particularly in sporting goods and department stores. Even stores selling electronics failed to draw enough customers to sustain hiring.

"People aren't finding jobs, as far as I can see, and it looks like it's going to stay that way for awhile," said John Dodds, director of the Philadelphia Unemployment Project, an advocacy group for the unemployed.

A report released by City Controller Alan Butkovitz showed that the city of Philadelphia - the nation's sixth largest - ranked third in unemployment in September, behind Los Angeles (12.7 percent) and Chicago (11.3 percent). Philadelphia's jobless rate was 11 percent.

In October, temporary help services added 33,700 jobs nationally, the biggest bump since the category began an upward trend in July. Employers tend to hire temporary and temp-to-perm workers before adding full-time slots.

However, architects and engineers are still losing jobs. Because these professionals work at the start of construction and industrial projects, last month's decline of 7,700 jobs is evidence that companies are still either unable or reluctant to make major capital investments.

At a leadership breakfast for 350 at the Union League this morning, hiring managers said they are seeing some faint upward trends.

"We're starting to recruit again and it's a little while since we did that," said Allyson Adamusik, a director of global human resources at Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., in the Philadelphia area. The company had laid off earlier in the year.

Frank Powell, vice president of business development at Lee Hecht Harrison, a national company that provides employment counseling for laid-off workers, said: "We are seeing a little falloff in revenues" as fewer people need his company's services.

"The first quarter was the strongest," said Powell, who works in Lee Hecht's Plymouth Meeting office. "It was being at the top of a very high mountain. We're still busy, but it's just fewer people."

The Labor Department report showed continued declines in construction, manufacturing, information, leisure and hospitality, while business and professional services gained along with education and health services. Government hiring was flat.

Employment in financial activities dropped by 8,000. One of the lost jobs belonged to Vicki Brown, formerly a leadership development specialist at PNC Financial Services Group Inc. She was laid off a week ago, for the second time in this recession.

In June 2008, Brown, of Wilmington, lost a human resources job at American International Group Inc. when the insurer went through its meltdown. She had worked there for more than 20 years.

Then, in November 2008, she landed the PNC job. "I was very lucky," she said. But that's over for now. "I pulled the short end of the straw."

Brown says she's optimistic because "there's a lot of pent-up demand, even though companies are reluctant to hire. Everyone is tearing their hair out from being overworked."


Contact staff writer Jane M. Von Bergen at 215-854-2769 or jvonbergen@phillynews.com.

This article contains information from the Associated Press.

Comments   
Posted 09:08 AM, 11/06/2009
kelprod1
hahaha...."change we can believe in". In the 12 months since this dummy was elected, Obama's "historic" all out assualt on free trade and American industry has driven the unemployment rate up a full 4% points. And that is including flat out stealing almost $1T from future generations to use as political bribe cash (stimulus). Wake up people! Until these fools in DC stop demonizing American business, profit and success, the unemployment rate will continue to soar. One cannot support Barack Obama and his fellow congressional thieves all out assualt on free trade and American industry and also expect that free trade and American industry to provide the fruits of employment, investment, growth, wealth creation and prosperity. Obama's economic agenda is a PERFECT counter balance to a thriving economy. Wake up!
Posted 09:42 AM, 11/06/2009
xi_lives
The President and his henchmen and women are focussed on the wrong things. Healthcare and cap and trade are job killers. The stimulus was a trillion dollars down the toilet. 2010 is going to be an ugly election year.
Posted 09:56 AM, 11/06/2009
yeswecant
Thanks Obama you are doing a fantastic job. I thought with the stimulus nonsense unemployment would stay below 10%? Hey at least Obama's cronies at Goldman Sach made a 2 Billion Profit. Wake up middle class Obama does not care about you! What a total failure.
Posted 09:56 AM, 11/06/2009
chrissmith
How can the recession possibly be "over" if unemployment is around 10%? Talk about liberal spin!
Posted 10:11 AM, 11/06/2009
Mr Poon
Hope and Change! Yes We Can! We just gettin started! You aint seen nuttin yet!
Posted 10:19 AM, 11/06/2009
hexyscores
10% is a bogus number anyway! Try 18% unemployment! They way they compute the unemployment rate is a joke! But were in recovery right? Go out and spend somemore money you don't have! These people really think were all stupid!
Posted 10:53 AM, 11/06/2009
kelprod1
...and I would like to meet the economic idiots who believe that the continued governmental taxation, mandating, regulating and interjection on American business is good for our country. Folks, those incremental costs on American industry need to come from somewhere and there is not a CEO worth anything who is going to take that from profit...those expenses will be paid directly from additional cuts on the expense- side which ALWAYS come from human resources and less investment in growth for the business. Both are daggers for our overall economy. Stand up to that economic dummy Obama and his fellow congressional band of theives...their continued taxation and penalizing agenda on American industry is going to hurt ALL consumers- and is assured to increase unemployment levels. If you are not yet unemployed, supporting Obama's anti- American industry agenda is the fastest way to get you cut out of a job. Health care "reform", climate change regulation and the continued demonizing of profit are all going to dangerously destructive to American business and our overall economic well being. Oppose Obama and his congressional band of thieves!
Posted 11:15 AM, 11/06/2009
The_Unknown-Poster
What happened to those jobs that were supposed to be created from the stimulus?
Posted 11:18 AM, 11/06/2009
khase
Right. Obama is supposed to undo in 12 months what took 8 years to create. Idiots!
Posted 11:20 AM, 11/06/2009
yeswecant
just take a look at Philly on how wonderful Democrat policies has improved the city.
Posted 11:25 AM, 11/06/2009
Mr Poon
But Obama speaks so well. He's so cool. It's like having a teenager with no life experience in office. Thanks a lot for giving us this utter disaster of a president, American Idol voters.
Posted 11:33 AM, 11/06/2009
Mr Poon
From what I remember, the Bush economy was running just fine until the socialists took over 3 years ago. Elections have consequences - enter the Oconomy. But he reads that teleprompter so wonderfully.
Posted 11:37 AM, 11/06/2009
Mr Poon
Comon Unknown! He "saved OR created" them! You're out of line....didn't you get the memo. The sky is green.
Posted 11:39 AM, 11/06/2009
Mr Poon
How about a cash for this clunker of a president program? Can we trade him in for an adult?
Posted 11:43 AM, 11/06/2009
hasgottostop
I knew it would only be a matter of time before the first Obama slave came out to cry, whine, and defend his master's inability to make any progress on the economy in "only" a year. So how's that hope and change working out for everyone? It's amazing how Barry's managed to destroy this country in "only" one year--this feat will be the only accomplishment that Barry is remembered for when he finishes his term in 2012 and is remembered as the worst president in American history. It will take generations for our country to recover from the amount of ineffective spending this moron continues to undertake. And that might only happen if Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid are all abandoned in the near future due to their insurmountable unfunded future liabilities. Apparently some people like to be slave workers and look forward with eagerness to continue to live for decades in squalor on the plantation of Barry Obama that is now called "America". He should stick to the only thing he's good at--modeling Michelle's "mom" jeans.
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