CounterPunch Exclusives

CounterPunch Exclusives

The Need for Government-Funded Job Creation Right Now

Photo by Jean-Philippe Delberghe

Although there are signs that the labor market is weakening, we continue to be in a period of low unemployment. While the national unemployment rate is a very useful macroeconomic indicator, it can hide a significant amount of joblessness. For example, in July 2026, the national unemployment rate was 4.1 percent, and there were 6.9 million people officially counted as unemployed. But there were another 5.9 million who did not have a job and wanted to work but did not meet the technical requirements to be counted as unemployed. Additionally, there were4.8 million people who wanted to work full-time but who could only find part-time work. Totaling these three groups, in July there were 17.6 million people who wanted a job or more work hours. This number is two and a half times the official unemployment count.

The employment-to-population ratio, or employment rate, is another useful labor market measure. It shows the percent of the population that is working. Because of the technicalities of the unemployment rate, it can significantly undercount joblessness — ironically, particularly for the populations with the most difficulties finding work. States with a relatively high rate of joblessness can have a similar unemployment rate as states with a low rate of joblessness because of this problem.1 This problem is avoided with the employment rate because with the employment rate the jobless are simply those who are not working.

For the prime-age or population (25 to 54 years old), ideally 80 percent or more of the population should be employed. The American Community Survey data for 2024 – the most recent available – indicate a national average of 82.2 percent of the prime-age population working. This is a good national employment rate.

But it is important to understand that the national average data can hide a significant amount of variation at the state and local level. Figure 1 shows that in 2024 the prime-age employment rate ranged from a low of 77.2 percent in West Virginia to a high........

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