The latest jobs report before the 2024 election has raised concerns about the state of the U.S. economy under President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. The report, released last week, showed a surprising decline in job growth, highlighting weaknesses in the employment sector.
According to the report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the U.S. economy added only 12,000 jobs in October, marking the worst performance in nearly four years. Furthermore, the job gains from the previous two months were revised down by a total of 112,000 jobs, suggesting a more serious issue than previously thought.
Interestingly, when excluding government jobs, which increased by 40,000, the actual job growth was a drop of 28,000 positions. This is the first negative report since 2020. Some officials in Washington attributed the job decline to the impact of Hurricanes Helene and Milton but couldn’t specify how much the storms affected employment.
The BLS acknowledged, “It is likely that payroll employment estimates in some industries were affected by the hurricanes; however, it is not possible to quantify the net effect on the over-the-month change in national employment, hours, or earnings estimates.”
Moreover, one significant trend that cannot be blamed on the hurricanes is the ongoing decline in American manufacturing, which has lost jobs for three consecutive months. There’s also a trend identified as “jobs replacement,” where immigration appears to contribute significantly to the job market.
Recent analyses suggest that undocumented workers accounted for a substantial portion of job growth, with estimates indicating that they added roughly 109,000 jobs per month to non-farm payrolls. In contrast, job growth among native-born workers has stagnated at zero.
Given these concerning statistics, it’s no surprise that discussions about the economy are being downplayed by Harris and many in the mainstream media. The focus on the gloomy job market raises questions about the administration’s handling of economic issues as the election approaches.
