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🎉 Labor market update
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Good Afternoon Party People! 🎉
BREAKING: The US added nearly 1 million fewer jobs than previously thought. This is the largest revision to jobs data since 2009.
US unemployment is now at 4.3%, the highest since 2021.
PARTY PLAN 🎉
🏢 Job market update
❌ Judge strikes noncompete nationwide
✏️ Job seeker resources
And, of course, MEMES!
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4:16 PM • Aug 21, 2024
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JOB MARKET
Labor Market Update
Economists at the Indeed Hiring Lab are optimistic about this month’s labor market update showing a rise in unemployment.
Yes, you read that right.
The rising unemployment numbers this month were largely driven by people entering or re-entering the workforce.
People without jobs don’t count towards unemployment if they're not looking for jobs, so the unemployment numbers are up now that more people are looking. A good sign that workers remain confident in their ability to eventually find work.
Here are the key points from the Indeed Hiring Lab monthly labor market update:
The unemployment rate has risen 0.55 percentage points on a three-month average basis since its low of 3.5% in January 2023, raising recession fears. Earlier this month, we covered the “Sahm Rule” and what it means regarding an official recession.
Much of the increase in unemployment has been driven by workers joining or re-joining the labor force, a sign that workers remain confident in their ability to eventually find work.
Persistent wage growth is likely to draw more workers back to the market and will continue to do so if it stays strong, a reason for cautious optimism that outright labor market deterioration may not be immediately at hand. YoY wage growth had been falling consistently for over two years until this months report.
The Indeed Job Posting Index stood at 113 in mid-August, meaning the number of job postings was 13% higher than it was on the eve of the pandemic. And after falling slowly but steadily after peaking in early 2022, the decline in job postings appears to have leveled off and has hovered roughly between 10% and 15% higher than pre-pandemic norms since mid-May.
Some economists aren’t so optimistic about the rise in workers entering the workforce, claiming that when the labor market is strong, they skip the unemployment phase altogether. Simple solution: use JobParty.AI to skip the unemployment phase and land a high-paying job with minimal effort.
“Taken together, these data paint a picture of a labor market that is strong enough to keep attracting workers to the labor force but not strong enough to get them a job as quickly as in the past.”
WORKPLACE
Judge Strikes Noncompetes
First noncompetes were gone, then they were here to stay, then the FTC ruled that they were gone for good, but now they’re here to stay again?!
What is going on?!
This week, a Texas federal judge ruled that the FTC’s ban on noncompete agreements violates the Administrative Procedure Act and exceeds the agency’s statutory authority.
The ruling applies nationwide.
The FTC’s ban was set to take effect in less than two weeks on September 4th. Last month, a federal judge in Pennsylvania sided with the FTC. Last week, a Florida federal judge issued a limited injunction of the ban, stating that the FTC likely exceeded its statutory authority.
And now a Texas federal judge strikes the whole thing down entirely! Who gets the final say in these things?!
Nobody really knows, but it looks like this ruling will hold up, and companies will be able to lock their employees into noncompetes after all.
The FTC’s noncompete ban targeted contractual clauses that apply to an estimated 1 in 5 U.S. workers by the agency’s estimates. The rule would have allowed noncompete agreements with certain senior executives before the rule’s effective date to remain in force while rendering all other noncompetes unenforceable.
The ban was swiftly challenged by employers and business advocates, saying noncompetes were essential to protect proprietary information and trade secrets.
(And also to screw their best employees and prevent them from leaving. Well, they didn’t say that exactly, but people can read between the lines).
“This is the outcome we have predicted since the FTC first proposed the rule almost two years ago, and we expect it to be upheld on appeal, ultimately by the Supreme Court. This is a perfect example of the judicial system holding unelected bureaucrats to account for their overreach in an area that they have neither the expertise nor Congressional authorization to regulate.”
Should noncompetes be banned? |
JOB SEEKER RESOURCES
In Demand: The Colleges Where Students Start Jobs Right Away
Looking to go back to school? Here is a list put together by the Wall Street Journal of the top universities where students and graduates are finding jobs right away.
The #1 site for remote jobs. With thousands of popular remote jobs at top companies, it’s no wonder over 10 million people have used FlexJobs to “find a better way to work.”
This one is a non-negotiable for job seekers. Their all-inclusive AI toolbox is built specifically for job seekers looking to optimize their applications and land high-paying jobs ASAP. Includes an AI career coach, cover letter writer, interview prep tool with the ability to find and ask real interview questions from the company/role, and a best-in-class resume optimizer.
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