The unemployment rate is dropping as more and more people leave the workforce. But, this unemployment rate might be completely irrelevant to today's job market. President of the Job Creators Network, Alfredo Ortiz, says the official unemployment rate should no longer be used to measure the health of the economy.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the unemployment rate for January was 6.6, a slight decline from December's 6.7.
"The percentage of Americans participating in the labor force is in free-fall, rendering the official unemployment figure a meaningless measurement that can be dangerously misleading," Ortiz said. “For two decades before 2009, at least two-thirds of American adults wanted work in the greatest economy on Earth. Now the mighty American labor force is quietly but decisively walking away, while Washington is hypnotized by a false falling unemployment rate.”
He adds that the official numbers do not represent what is really happening in the American workforce.
“The official number leaves out 40 percent of the truly idled workforce,” Ortiz said. “There's nothing to celebrate about a larger share of a rapidly shrinking pie – that's how a nation goes out of business.”
It seems more and more people are seeking something different from their jobs -- a real career path in an engaging and flexible workplace. If the truth is that employees are walking away from their jobs, perhaps it is time for employees to reevaluate their practices.
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