Unemployment in the U.S. and in North America

The United States economy, along with much of the rest of North America, is now going through some of the best economic times it has ever experienced. The US, with an unemployment rate below 5%, has the lowest rate since the Vietnam War. However, with a country of more than 260 million people, there still exists a problem with people not working or people not being able to find work.

The first article I read was called Female Unemployment in North America by the NAALC (North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation). The article spoke about the three countries of North America and how the level of female unemployment is improving by still not as good as it can be. In 1996, the unemployment rate for women in the U.S. stood at 4.49 million women. This figure represents a reduction of 3.6% in comparison with the 1984 female unemployment level (4.66 million workers). During this period, the level of male unemployment also fell, by a far greater percentage (12.5%). The most significant decline in unemployment was reported in the United States, where the unemployment rate fell from 7.6% in 1984 to 5.4% in 1996 (and under 5% shortly after). In Canada, this figure fell from 11.3% to 9.9% during the same period. And, in Mexico, the rate of unemployment for women tended to decrease until 1993. After, it began to grow, reaching 5.2% in 1995 due to some hard economic circumstances in the country.

This article speaks about how young women are subject to lower unemployment rates than their young male counterparts. However, this trend is only in the US and Canada; the opposite actually occurs in Mexico. It also says that women are generally unemployed for shorter periods of time throughout all three countries.

The second article is called, Now Is The Time: Places Left Behind in the New Economy by United Department of Urban Housing and Development. The article speaks about some of the economic changes and the unemployment status in the Northeastern U.S.. The region as a whole has fallen to 4.7 percent, the lowest rate in over 8 years. and a dramatic drop from a pre-recovery 8.2 percent in 1992. Overall, unemployment in the central cities of the Northeast has declined by 35 percent since 1992. And it explains that how many of the cities saw dramatic declines in unemployment between 1992 and 1998.

The last article I read was called, The Clinton – Gore Economic Record: The Lowest Unemployment Rate in 30 Years from the Office of the Press Secretary. This article is about the great U.S. economic status due to Bill Clinton’s bold, three-part economic strategy. This strategy focused on several objectives: fiscal discipline, investing in education, health care, science and technology, and opening foreign markets. The article mentions how the 20.4 new jobs in the U.S and how Clinton added more jobs then any other past president. African American and Hispanic Unemployment Rates Were the Lowest on Record in 1999. The unemployment rate for African Americans has fallen from 14.2 percent in 1992 to 8.0 percent in 1999 – the lowest rate on record. The unemployment rate for Hispanics has fallen from 11.6 percent in 1992 to 6.4 percent in 1999 -- the lowest rate on record.

http://www.naalc.org/english/publications/ewna_part2.htm

http://www.hud.gov/pressrel/nowtime.html Now is the time: Places left behind in the new economy

http://www.whitehouse.gov/WH/New/html/20000112_1.html

References:

1. Internet Resource: http://www.naalc.org/english/publications/ewna_part2.htm. Internet Explorer 5. Blue Light Internet Connection.

2. Internet Resource: http://www.hud.gov/pressrel/nowtime.html. Internet Explorer 5. Blue Light Internet Connection.

3. Internet Resource: http://www.whitehouse.gov/WH/New/html/20000112_1.html. Internet Explorer 5. Blue Light Internet Connection.