The unemployment rate jumped to 10.2 percent in October -- the highest in 26 years -- up from 9.8 percent the month before. President Obama called the return to double-digit joblessness "sobering," even though the economy has started growing again, signaling an end to the recession. How much worse can the unemployment rate get? (watch an Associated Press report on unemployment topping 10 percent)
It's going to get worse: "It’s beginning to look like America’s unemployment rate is going to get worse before it gets better," says Laurent Belsie in The Christian Science Monitor. That will increase pressure on President Obama and Congress to create more jobs. But economists aren't so worried -- the unemployment rate is volatile, but steadier employment data suggests "the 22-month rise in unemployment is slowing appreciably."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Trump uses tariffs to upend Brazil's domestic politicsIN THE SPOTLIGHT By slapping a 50% tariff on Brazil for its criminal investigation into Bolsonaro, the Trump administration is brazenly putting its fingers on the scales of a key foreign election
-
3 questions to ask when deciding whether to repair or replace your broken appliancethe explainer There may be merit to fixing what you already have, but sometimes buying new is even more cost-effective
-
'Trump's authoritarian manipulation of language'Instant Opinion Vienna has become a 'convenient target for populists' | Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
