Unemployment Down, But Fewer Jobs Being Created

The nation's unemployment rate may be dropping, but that's little comfort to the many people still looking for work following the worst recession since the Great Depression. 

A Washington Post article explains that although the unemployment rate has dipped, fewer jobs are actually being created. 

In April, the U.S. economy added just 115,000 jobs, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Friday, the article states. In a normal month, that would not even be enough to keep up with new entrants into the labor market. But in this economy, it was enough to drive unemployment from 8.2 percent down to 8.1 percent, the lowest point since January 2009, according the the article.     

The explanation is a little-watched measure known as the “labor force participation rate,” according to the Post. The rate tracks the number of working-age Americans who are holding a job or are looking for one. Between March and April, that number dropped by 342,000. But because the official unemployment rate counts only those workers who are actively seeking work, that actually made the unemployment rate go down, the Post reports. 

New Jersey's unemployment rate is 9 percent. 

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