Jobs report: Economy added 96K jobs in August

CBS/iStockphoto

(AP) WASHINGTON - U.S. employers added 96,000 jobs last month, a weak figure that could slow any momentum President Barack Obama hoped to gain from his speech to the Democratic National Convention.

The unemployment rate fell to 8.1 percent from 8.3 percent in July, the Labor Department said Friday. But that was only because more people gave up looking for work. The government only counts people as unemployed if they are actively searching.

The government also said 41,000 fewer jobs were created in July and June than first estimated. The economy has added just 139,000 jobs a month since the beginning of the year, below 2011's average of 153,000.

August jobs report disappoints
Middle-class share of America's income shrinks

Dow Jones industrial futures, which had been up before the report, fell soon after it was released.

The hiring figures and unemployment rate will be among the most politically consequential of the campaign. They arrive just as the presidential race enters its final stretch. Jobs are the core issue, and the report could sway some undecided voters.

There will be two additional employment reports before Election Day Nov. 6. But by then, more Americans will have made up their minds.

In his speech Thursday night, Obama acknowledged incomplete progress in repairing the still-struggling economy and asked voters to remain patient.

"The truth is, it will take more than a few years for us to solve challenges that have built up over the decades," Obama said.

Tepid hiring could nudge the Federal Reserve to announce some new action to boost growth after its meeting next week.

The report was weak throughout.

In addition to those who've given up looking for work, many young Americans are avoiding the job market by remaining in school. All told, the proportion of the population that is either working or looking for work fell to 63.5 percent. That's the lowest level in 31 years for the labor force participation rate.

Average hourly wages dipped a penny to $23.52 and are only slightly ahead of inflation in the past year.

The average work week was unchanged in August after being revised downward in July to 34.4 hours. And the number of temporary jobs fell for the first time in five months. Both figures suggest that companies are seeing less demand for their services and need fewer workers.

Many of the jobs were in lower-paying industries such as retail, which added 6,100 jobs, and hotels, restaurants and other leisure industries, which gained 34,000. Higher-paying manufacturing jobs fell by 15,000, the most in two years.

[AlanBeasley]

Clinton inherited the best economy in over 50 years
and Clinton left a DISASTER after being impeached in that Madison Banking coruption!

Monthly Job Growth - bls gov (CES0000000001) (liberals are afraid of this site)

What Clinton Inherited:

Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
1993 310 242 -51 308 265 174 295 160 239 278 261 307
1994 270 201 462 353 333 313 364 298 355 208 422 272

And the disaster Clinton left behind:

Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
2001 -15 63 -28 -282 -44 -128 -125 -155 -243 -331 -295 -178
2002 -129 -146 -24 -84 -9 47 -100 -11 -55 121 8 -16

Is this what Clinton described in his speach?

Did the press question it? .Bush stood up and defended America and ended the attacks Clinton ignored thru the 90s.

[AlanBeasley]

Who left the economy in worse shape - Clinton or Bush? (closer than you think)

The economy Clinton inherited was AWESOME (best in 50 years before

Clintonleft a disaster behind looing millions of jobs - and VERY unsafe.

2 years into Clinton - the U.S. economy he inherited created 6.6 million jobs
2 years into Bush - the U.S. economy Clinton left behind lost 2.3 million jobs

Please don't wast my time if you won't even look it up on the bls site....or my book!

Monthly Job Growth - bls.gov (CES0000000001)

What Clinton Inherited:

Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
1993 310 242 -51 308 265 174 295 160 239 278 261 307
1994 270 201 462 353 333 313 364 298 355 208 422 272

And the disaster Clinton left behind:

Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
2001 -15 63 -28 -282 -44 -128 -125 -155 -243 -331 -295 -178
2002 -129 -146 -24 -84 -9 47 -100 -11 55 121 8 -163

Is this what Clinton described in hi speach? Did the press question it?

What if Bush claimed he left a "roaring economy" like Clinton tries to claim?

and by ignoring OBL's annual attacks in the 1990s - Clinton cost the taxpayer $1.7 trillion and almost 10k lives!

and now Clinton's crying about a $24 billion surplus! (funds the government for 4 days)

[AlanBeasley]

Just the fact that democrats have no clue what the U.S. Auto Indusrty is - explains why so many Americans are out of work and racing toward poverty under Obama!

They don't even understand the Auto Industry in the USA (unless union thugs bribe them).

Over 70 Questions we will not hear at any of the democrat controlled debates -

1. What kind of Flexibility (comrade)?
2. What is the exact Medicare Actuary's error saying you cut $716B from Medicare?
3. GM is 16% of the U.S. Auto Industry - how did you save Toyota, Honda, Ford, KIA and the 20 others that build, sell and service cars in the USA?
...
73. Seaweed? Really?!? Have you seen gasoline prices? Look for YouTube - 2012 Presidential Debate Bias!

BTW - Will we now see ads with Ryan AND Obama pushing granny over the cliff?
Or since Obama tripled the cut and eliminated M-Advantage - it's no longer a cut?

Will the press obey Obama's order - to call it "savings"? We will see!

Clinton - ALL presidents have surpluses when they leave America defenseless!

Big deal! ($1.7 trillion to clean up Clinton's mess and end a decade of terror thru the 1990s!)
We are still paying w/lives TODAY!

Even if GM had closed - the U.S. Auto Industry would be as strong if not stronger!

We build, sell, and service cars form over 15 companies! Employees at these companies want to ask Obama how he saved them! U.S. Auto Industry: Ford, KIA, Honda, BMW, Toyota, Nissan, Jeep, Mazda, Volkswagen, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Volvo, Audi, Subaru, Suzuki, Mercedes, Saab, Porsche, Jaguar, Hyundai, Ferrari, Land Rover, Maserati, Bentley, Rolls Royce, Maybach, Chrysler, and GM.

[Maerzie]

And, some reported that this was a "BAD" sign?? The unemployment rate STILL FELL; it didn't RISE! It took Bush 8 YEARS to CAUSE this devastation, while American(?) TRAITORS, like Romney, were helping make the Bush/Cheney hole DEEPER by pioneering the outsourcing of our best jobs, as if THAT too a genius to figure out we could rip off our own people!! Who couldn't do the simple ARITHMETIC to know that we can make $799.75 each week, if we send that $20 an hour job to slave-labor countries , paying 25 CENTS a week?? DUHHH! THAT's how the "genius" Mitt Romney screwed his own countrymen!!

[mav547166]

It fell because they do not count the 400,000 Americans that stopped looking for work. The labor participation rate fell to 63.5% the lowest since Sep of 1981. There are now ~88,900,000 Americans over 16, not in prison, not in mental institutions, not in nursing homes, and not only unemployed but not even looking for work that are not counted in the numbers. Check out the Department of Labor so that people will not accuse you of going to Harvard.

[milt3726]

Soon the leeches will have to stop drinking that "Hopium laced Kool-Aid" since Obama will be out of a job soon. So put a fork in the Judeo/Christian haters, they're done!

[milt3726]

368,000 people dropped out of the workforce, put a fork in Obama he's done! The battle lines have been drawn, Capitalism vs. the Socialist/Marxist Regime: it's us, the hard working tax-paying, Americans against the Sycophant liberal Hollywood crowd supported by the liberal media and the Welfare receiving, EBT using, lazy, sucking the teat of America dry. Only this time your Hope and Change is Hype and Blame and we won't be fooled by your phony unemployment figures or your lying liberal press buddies, or your negative attacks, since that's all you have. YOU WILL BE DEFEATED! ONE AND DONE, NOBAMA 2012!

[jamit2me]

Was the employment/unemployment data adjusted for the flooding throughout the southern states??? If not, is the month to month comparison really comparable?
Just asking.

[Paul_Derengowski]

Obama needs to join the very unemployment line he has helped to create.

http://derengowski.wordpress.com/2012/09/07/democratic-national-circus-day-3-obama-fails-to-deliveragain/

[Kestrel88]

Total job loses in 2008 -- 2.6 million. Yes, that's right. 2.6 million jobs lost in the last year of the Bush "presidency". That is the GOP economic policies at work.

Better off than we were 4 years ago? Uh, yes...

[AlanBeasley]

Who left the economy in worse shape - Clinton or Bush? (closer than you think)

The economy Clinton inherited was AWESOME (best in 50 years before

Clintonleft a disaster behind looing millions of jobs - and VERY unsafe.

2 years into Clinton - the U.S. economy he inherited created 6.6 million jobs
2 years into Bush - the U.S. economy Clinton left behind lost 2.3 million jobs

Please don't wast my time if you won't even look it up on the bls site....or my book!

Monthly Job Growth - bls.gov (CES0000000001)

What Clinton Inherited:

Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
1993 310 242 -51 308 265 174 295 160 239 278 261 307
1994 270 201 462 353 333 313 364 298 355 208 422 272

And the disaster Clinton left behind:

Year Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
2001 -15 63 -28 -282 -44 -128 -125 -155 -243 -331 -295 -178
2002-129 -146 -24 -84 -9 47 -100 -11 55 121 8 -163

Is this what Clinton described in hi speach? Did the press question it?

What if Bush claimed he left a "roaring economy" like Clinton tries to claim?

and by ignoring OBL's annual attacks in the 1990s - Clinton cost the taxpayer $1.7 trillion and almost 10k lives!

and now Clinton's crying about a $24 billion surplus! (funds the government for 4 days)

[dvschorn]

CBS MoneyWatch's editor-at-large Jill Schlesinger has just posted an analysis of the August jobs report. It can be found here: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505123_162-57507909/august-jobs-report-disappoints/

Daniel Schorn, CBS MoneyWatch