US jobless rate tops 10 % for 1st time since 1983: report

Obama Signs Bill Extending Jobless Benefits as Unemployment Rate Skyrockets Nearly 16 million people can't find jobs, the Labor Department said Friday, pushing the unemployment rate over 10 percent for the first time since 1983. Just hours after the government announced that the jobless rate topped 10 percent for the time since 1983, President Obama signed new legislation to provide additional unemployment benefits to Americans thrown out of work. At a news briefing in the White House Rose Garden on Friday, Obama said the sobering national unemployment number -- 10.2 percent -- is regretful, and pledged to work hard to restore the struggling economy.
Nearly 16 million people are unemployed and the economy shed a net total of 190,000 jobs in October -- less than the downwardly revised 219,000 lost in September -- the Labor Department said Friday. August job losses were also revised lower, to 154,000 from 201,000. "History tells us that job growth always lags behind economic growth," Obama said, noting a government report last week that said the economy grew at a 3.5 percent annual rate in the July-September quarter, the strongest signal yet that the economy is rebounding. Obama said the $24 billion economic stimulus bill will extend jobless benefits for up to 20 additional weeks -- an extension that will help over one million Americans, he said.
He added that the bill will also extend tax credits for all home buyers, adding that his economic team is evaluating other options to create jobs and get the economy moving.
"I promise I won't rest until America is prosperous once again," he said. The loss of jobs last month exceeded economists' estimates. It's the 22nd straight month the U.S. economy has shed jobs, the longest on records dating back 70 years.
Counting those who have settled for part-time jobs or stopped looking for work, the unemployment rate would be 17.5 percent, the highest on records dating from 1994. The jobless rate rose to 10.2 percent from 9.8 percent in September. The jump reflects a sharp increase in the tally of unemployed Americans, which rose to 15.7 million from 15.1 million. That was much larger than the net loss of jobs, which is based on a survey of businesses. Economists say it could climb as high as 10.5 percent next year because employers remain reluctant to hire.
"You need explosive growth to take the unemployment rate down," said Dan Greenhaus, chief economic strategist for New York-based investment firm Miller Tabak & Co. Greenhaus said the economy soared by nearly 8 percent in 1983 after a steep recession, lowering the jobless rate by 2.5 percentage points that year. But the economy is unlikely to improve that fast this time, as consumers remain cautious and tight credit hinders businesses. In fact, many analysts expect economic growth to moderate early next year, as the impact of various government stimulus programs fades. Many economists also worry that persistently high unemployment could undermine the recovery by restraining consumer spending, which accounts for 70 percent of the economy.