Unemployment: The Art of Political Spin

Aug 18

jonpeltoBudget Cuts, Economy, Education Reform, Layoffs, Malloy , , , 13 Comments

On Thursday, Connecticut’s Department of Labor released their monthly report on the state of the economy.  The data revealed that the percent of unemployed had risen from 8.1 percent in June to 8.5 percent in July.  In response, Governor Malloy said he was “skeptical” of the report’s accuracy.

Meanwhile, on Friday, the Obama Administration released a report showing that at least 300,000 teaching jobs have been lost in the last three years. Obama called for new investment in education spending.

The nation’s “official” unemployment rate stands at about 8.3 percent.  That means that the true unemployment rate in the United States is at least 15 percent.

Although the media traditionally reports on what is called the “U-3” unemployment rate, a far better measure is one called the “U-6” rate.  The “U-6” unemployment rate, which is released at the same time as the lower number, includes the traditional definition of the “unemployed,” but also adds-in those people who are employed in part-time jobs, despite the fact that they are actively looking for full-time work.

While having a part-time job helps some families make ends meet, an honest definition of being unemployed must include those who can’t find the full-time job they need and, instead, are forced to fall back on some type of part-time employment.

Since Connecticut’s numbers are similar to the national numbers, we can safely assume that at least 15% of Connecticut residents continue to find themselves without the work they want and need.

If the truth be told, the notion that the “official” unemployment rate is 8.1 percent or 8.5 percent is, quite frankly, irrelevant.

The very real impact federal, state and local budget cuts have on the economy and our education system becomes clear when we understand that since President Obama took office, the number of Connecticut residents employed in federal, state and local government jobs has dropped from 251,200 to 235,000.

This means that in just the last four years, there are 16,000 few jobs in schools and other government positions around the state.

Of that number, the overwhelming majority, 10,000 jobs, have been lost just since Malloy became Connecticut’s governor.

Last month, President Obama said, “think about what that means for our country. At a time when the rest of the world is racing to out-educate America, these cuts force our kids into crowded classrooms, cancel programs for preschoolers and kindergarteners, and shorten the school week and the school year. That’s the opposite of what we should be doing as a country.”

Today, the President used his weekly address to talk about the loss of teaching jobs, while reiterating his pledge to invest an additional $25 billion to prevent layoffs and strengthen public education around the country.

The sad truth is that regardless of whether the President is calling for more of an investment in education or the Governor is skeptical that the unemployment is going up when “feels” it should be going down, the fact is, Connecticut’s children are returning to school in a couple of weeks with far few teachers and support staff.

That is bad news for unemployed teachers, our children and our entire society.

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  • Linda174

    The best chance of getting paid by a school system in CT is to be an out-of-state consultant or reformy-quasi-educational vendor of some sort. The less teaching experience you have and the further removed you are from children the better your chances. If you taught for two years as a TFA temp that is also a plus. Just look up some of the verbiage from the newest RTTT stimulus plan and you will be all set.

    See the herd of sheep feeding at the trough:

    http://truthinamericaneducation.com/

    • Magister

      Too bad I’m overqualified.

      • Linda174

        If you can act docile and dumb and say that you think test results are the most important assessment of learning and teaching, you could probably get a job at a charter sweatshop.

  • Buygoldandprosper

    Dan made certain that Cathy Malloy got a very well compensated ($200K) sinecure in the worst economy in modern history.
    His view of public service is that the public serves HIM!
    As for employment,a very important point that seems to be overlooked is job security. One can’t make long term plans if the employer can’t be trusted to keep workers on the payroll. Shipping jobs to China or India or Mexico or Stamford leaves workers,blue and white collar,in financial pergutory.
    Check today’s NY Times re: teacher tenure. Mr. Bloomberg seems pleased that the changes will favor the house but his approach lacks vision. Dan probably feels the same way.
    Cathy Malloy does not have to worry for a few more years about her job security but at her pay scale,and with the Malloy’s living off the fat of the land,she can save up for her early retirement when/if that occurs.
    I hope that the citizens of Connecticut make certain that both Dan and Cathy get a taste of the real world in a couple of years.

    • Linda174

      I know of about 43,000-50,000 colleagues who have no intentions of voting for Malloy ever again.

  • Guest

    Plenty of teachers in Connecticut have been made redundant–laid off, reduced in force, not renewed–to make way for TFA. In addition to the sobering article linked by Buygoldandprosper from the NYTimes (about Bloomberg’s brave new world of teaching without tenure), see this expose of TFA–who don’t even meet their own goals (no adequate yearly progress), although they are allowed to lie about it: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/48688907/ns/us_news-life/

  • http://www.facebook.com/melanie.savage.1610 Melanie Savage

    Obama calls for a new investment in education spending. Out of the other side of his mouth, he’s chatting with his pal Arne Duncan about the “work” he’s currently doing to “turn public education around.” What do you suppose those conversations sound like?
    So Obama calls for more spending, which of course comes from our tax dollars. Tax dollars that STILL don’t come in a sufficient portion from America’s richest .01 percent. Then he hands those dollars over to Duncan and the minions that he has stationed all over the country–two of whom we are lucky enough to have right here in good old CT. The minions siphon those dollars away from children in our poorest districts and into the pockets of administrators and corporations that profit from testing, textbooks, computer-generated assessments, etc., etc., etc. Meanwhile, REAL teachers are laid off and replaced by TFAers. Or their duties are increased without an increase in pay. Or their jobs are made so miserable that they just give up and leave the profession, etc., etc., etc.
    Here’s what I’m beginning to think–Obama was a planned decoy. The oligarchy knew that America was reaching a boiling point after 8 years of George W. They needed someone who LOOKED like he’d be on “our” side to keep the country from revolting. Who better than a black man promising “Hope and Change”? Let him accomplish a few things to appease the masses. Healthcare “reform” being the most obvious example–healthcare reform without a single-payer provision, mind you. Meanwhile, the unnecessary wars continue–and billions of dollars continue to go into the pockets of the military-industrial complex. We keep merrily burning oil, with no significant focus on increasing green technologies. Arne Duncan not only continues the focus on testing started by the previous administration, but he ramps up the privatization of public education–and the siphoning of tax dollars into private hands. The nation’s richest still don’t pay a fair portion of taxes. None of the criminals who head up the “too big to fail” banks have been prosecuted. Whose side is Obama really on? Unless and until he begins to address some of the above issues, I will believe that he is just another shill for the greedy rich psychopaths who have gained control of this country.
    And how sad would that be–we FINALLY elect a black president and he turns out to be just another shill for the oligarchy. How sad would it be to have the first black president in American history be remembered for presiding over the collapse of the American Republic?

    • R.L.

      I think you’re exactly right. I also think the only way to stop it, before it reaches a violent breaking point, is to change the paradigm of our “democracy” in that we can only vote for one of two parties. That or campaign finance reform. Both seem like fairy stories in this environment.

      • http://www.facebook.com/melanie.savage.1610 Melanie Savage

        The violence is coming. I think, if enough decent people stopped being polite, afraid, oblivious, focused on other things, in denial, etc., etc.–I think if enough of us actually woke up and started to force change via a massive show of civil disobedience/nonviolent protest–there might be a chance of avoiding a complete breakdown into violence and chaos. Might. I just started listening to a book on CD–”Blessed Unrest” by environmentalist Paul Hawken. Only made it a few chapters in so far, but the talk of how massive, widespread, determined and powerful the millions of social justice and environmental groups around the world are (yes, Hawken says there were between one and two million at the time the book was written several years ago)–the talk of these groups gives me a glimmer of hope. Great book so far.

  • buygoldandprosper

    Speaking of unemployment…Dan must be furioulsy shifting the numbers in his three card monty budget…last time I heard the state unemployment fund was insolvent and some payments were due this month. This from a fund with benefits that are the lowest in the country and employer paid taxes ($15K,max) were capped and unchanged since 1999.
    Hey DAN! Are we trying to keep up with China re:quality of life? Tell us what you think when you get back from your trip and go check out Tiananmen Square while you are looking for companies to locate to Ct.!
    Do the Chinese have a suggestion box that will save taxpayers $200M or is that a Yankee innovation?

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