cnbc | The coronavirus pandemic has pushed the jobless rate in New York, Los
Angeles and other major urban areas to near or above 20%, nearly twice
the national rate.
The unemployment rate is a barometer of financial hardship for American families, since losing a job typically leads to a significant drop in household income.
A rate of 20% means 1 in 5 Americans in the labor force can’t find work.
That’s double the national peak during the financial crisis of 2008-2009 and a level unseen since the 1930s, when the country was in the throes of its worst-ever economic downturn in the industrial era.
“It’s
devastating, in terms of how high that unemployment rate is,” said
Ioana Marinescu, an assistant professor of economics at the University
of Pennsylvania.
The
local business mix and policies around mandated business closures are
likely partly responsible for elevated joblessness in some major urban
areas, said Wayne Vroman, a labor economist at the Urban Institute.
Cities are also generally areas of higher business concentration when
compared with other regions, he said.
New York’s unemployment rate rose to 20.4% last month, according to state-level data
issued Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics that detailed figures
for some large metro areas. That’s up from 18.3% in May and 15% in
April.
The ranks of unemployed New Yorkers have grown by 261,000 people since April, to more than 811,000, according to the Bureau.
The trend stands in contrast to the broader U.S. labor-market recovery in May and June.
The U.S. unemployment rate fell to 11.1% last month from 14.7% in April, largely driven by furloughed workers being recalled to their jobs as states began reopening their economies.
New York, the hardest-hit area of the country early in the health crisis, has been cautious in lifting the economic shutdowns officials imposed to contain the spread of Covid-19.
The ranks of unemployed New Yorkers have grown by 261,000 people since April, to more than 811,000, according to the Bureau.
The trend stands in contrast to the broader U.S. labor-market recovery in May and June.
The U.S. unemployment rate fell to 11.1% last month from 14.7% in April, largely driven by furloughed workers being recalled to their jobs as states began reopening their economies.
New York, the hardest-hit area of the country early in the health crisis, has been cautious in lifting the economic shutdowns officials imposed to contain the spread of Covid-19.
