Paul Giorgio: It Was a Good Week for the US Economy
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Wednesday, May 07, 2014
Paul Giorgio, GoLocalWorcester MINDSETTER
The economy is turning around despite Republican attempts to stymie an economic recovery, believes Paul Giorgo.
President Barack Obama and the US economy received very good news last week. The unemployment rate dropped to 6.3 percent, the lowest it's been in five years. We added 288,000 new jobs. This .4 drop put unemployment at its lowest level since Bush was in office. In addition, the Dow broke a new record closing at its highest point ever.
In the last 50 months 9.3 million private sector jobs have been created. Any lag in job growth can clearly be attributed to the decline of public sector employment. Governments on all levels have cut jobs and the federal government is at one of its lowest levels in a long time.
Baby boomers retiring at record numbers
These positive unemployment numbers come at a time when studies show that 10,000 baby boomers are retiring every day. So that the creation of almost 300,000 jobs is truly extraordinary.
The economy is turning around despite Republican attempts to stymie an economic recovery. The same week that the unemployment numbers were released the Republicans in the House under the leadership of Speaker John Boehner refused to extend unemployment benefits and voted against increasing the minimum wage.
Trickle up economics
It is clear that Republicans will do anything to halt any economic growth in this country. You may ask how extending unemployment hurts the economy. Those still unemployed will not have money to spend. Even the unemployed help to create jobs in the private sector. They still need to buy groceries, the still need to buy gasoline; they still need to pay phone or heating bills. All these create jobs in the private sector since someone has to sell them the items they need to buy and those people get a paycheck and spend their money so that other people service them and have jobs.
To turn a phrase, it is trickle up economics.
This brings us to the Republican rejection of a livable minimum federal wage. It is clear that in the new post Bush economy, many more people are struggling to make ends meet and you can't do it at $7 per hour or $280 a week.
Prior to the second George Bush, a minimum wage job was entry level and a step up. In the post Bush Great Recession a minimum wage job is a way of life for a great many Americans. What the Right doesn't realize or worse doesn't care about is how that not only affects the poor, but also affects the shrinking Middle Class.
Middle class is eroding
The Middle class used to be comprised of shop owners, middle managers in business and people in the public sector. Public sector jobs are scant nowadays and not many people are running out to start a small business.
This is the direct result of the new Republicanism that only cares about the few. When I was growing up, the Republican Party was the party of Main Street and small town America. Now it is the party of Wall Street and corporate America.
If America is truly to succeed, this must change. The Republicans must end their war on the working class.
Paul Giorgio is a longtime Democratic Party Activist who has worked on numerous campaigns. He was a Lead Advance Person for President Clinton & Vice President Gore. He was Deputy Director of Special Events for President Clinton’s first Inauguration. He has been elected a delegate to numerous Democratic National Conventions and recently served as one of President Obama’s representatives on the Platform Committee. In 2013 he was chosen as a Presidential Elector. He is the President of Pagio, Inc., publishers of Pulse Magazine, Vitality Magazine and Worcester Medicine.
Related Slideshow: Central MA Unemployment Rates #72 - #1
Here are the unemployment statistics for each town in Central Mass, ranked from least to most-
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#72
Harvard
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 4.4%
Unemployed: 140
Employed: 3,059
Total workforce: 3,199
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#71
Hopkinton
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 4.7%
Unemployed: 369
Employed: 7,523
Total workforce: 7,892
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#69 (Tie)
Berlin
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 4.9%
Unemployed: 79
Employed: 1,520
Total workforce: 1,599
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#69 (Tie)
Hopedale
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 4.9%
Unemployed: 159
Employed: 3,074
Total workforce: 3,233
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#67 (Tie)
Bolton
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 5.1%
Unemployed: 147
Employed: 2,733
Total workforce: 2,880
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#67 (Tie)
Southborough
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 5.1%
Unemployed: 257
Employed: 4,813
Total workforce: 5,070
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#66
Marlborough
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 5.5%
Unemployed: 1,283
Employed: 21,909
Total workforce: 23,192
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#65
Northborough
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 5.6%
Unemployed: 432
Employed: 7,259
Total workforce: 7,691
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#62 (Tie)
Mendon
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 5.7%
Unemployed: 196
Employed: 3,218
Total workforce: 3,414
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#62 (Tie)
Princeton
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 5.7%
Unemployed: 107
Employed: 1,764
Total workforce: 1,871
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#62 (Tie)
Topsfield
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 5.7%
Unemployed: 176
Employed: 2,910
Total workforce: 3,086
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#61
Boylston
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 5.8%
Unemployed: 134
Employed: 2,167
Total workforce: 2,301
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#58 (Tie)
Shrewsbury
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 5.9%
Unemployed: 1,084
Employed: 17,152
Total workforce: 18,236
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#58 (Tie)
Sterling
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 5.9%
Unemployed: 256
Employed: 4,112
Total workforce: 4,368
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#58 (Tie)
Westborough
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 5.9%
Unemployed: 525
Employed: 8,415
Total workforce: 8,940
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#56 (Tie)
Sturbridge
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.0%
Unemployed: 306
Employed: 4,763
Total workforce: 5,069
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#56 (Tie)
Upton
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.0%
Unemployed: 241
Employed: 3,752
Total workforce: 3,993
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#53 (Tie)
Douglas
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.1%
Unemployed: 290
Employed: 4,469
Total workforce: 4,759
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#53 (Tie)
Hudson
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.1%
Unemployed: 696
Employed: 10,740
Total workforce: 11,436
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#53 (Tie)
Milford
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.1%
Unemployed: 954
Employed: 14,670
Total workforce: 15,624
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#51 (Tie)
Oakham
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.3%
Unemployed: 65
Employed: 973
Total workforce: 1,038
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#51 (Tie)
Sutton
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.3%
Unemployed: 302
Employed: 4,500
Total workforce: 4,802
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#48 (Tie)
Holden
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.4%
Unemployed: 576
Employed: 8,430
Total workforce: 9,006
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#48 (Tie)
Paxton
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.4%
Unemployed: 158
Employed: 2,327
Total workforce: 2,485
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#48 (Tie)
Shirley
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.4%
Unemployed: 223
Employed: 3,269
Total workforce: 3,492
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#46 (Tie)
Ayer
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.5%
Unemployed: 283
Employed: 4,100
Total workforce: 4,383
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#46 (Tie)
Hardwick
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.5%
Unemployed: 94
Employed: 1,359
Total workforce: 1,453
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#45
Grafton
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.6%
Unemployed: 635
Employed: 9,043
Total workforce: 9,678
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#42 (Tie)
Hubbardston
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.7%
Unemployed: 163
Employed: 2,255
Total workforce: 2,418
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#42 (Tie)
Millbury
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.7%
Unemployed: 489
Employed: 6,787
Total workforce: 7,276
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#42 (Tie)
Petersham
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.7%
Unemployed: 43
Employed: 596
Total workforce: 639
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#40 (Tie)
Lancaster
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.8%
Unemployed: 240
Employed: 3,281
Total workforce: 3,521
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#40 (Tie)
Townsend
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 6.8%
Unemployed: 346
Employed: 4,738
Total workforce: 5,084
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#38 (Tie)
Charlton
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.0%
Unemployed: 491
Employed: 6,483
Total workforce: 6,974
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#38 (Tie)
Dudley
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.0%
Unemployed: 431
Employed: 5,696
Total workforce: 6,127
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#33 (Tie)
Auburn
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.1%
Unemployed: 613
Employed: 8,024
Total workforce: 8,637
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#33 (Tie)
East Brookfield
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.1%
Unemployed: 86
Employed: 1,129
Total workforce: 1,215
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#33 (Tie)
Holland
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.1%
Unemployed: 99
Employed: 1,291
Total workforce: 1,390
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#33 (Tie)
New Braintree
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.1%
Unemployed: 40
Employed: 524
Total workforce: 564
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#33 (Tie)
Rutland
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.1%
Unemployed: 313
Employed: 4,081
Total workforce: 4,394
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#32
Oxford
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.2%
Unemployed: 548
Employed: 7,032
Total workforce: 7,580
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#31
Uxbridge
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.3%
Unemployed: 536
Employed: 6,784
Total workforce: 7,320
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#30
Leicester
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.5%
Unemployed: 450
Employed: 5,565
Total workforce: 6,015
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#27 (Tie)
Ashburnham
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.6%
Unemployed: 236
Employed: 2,865
Total workforce: 3,101
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#27 (Tie)
Lunenburg
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.6%
Unemployed: 398
Employed: 4,850
Total workforce: 5,248
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#27 (Tie)
Northbridge
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.6%
Unemployed: 608
Employed: 7,383
Total workforce: 7,991
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#26
Spencer
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.7%
Unemployed: 492
Employed: 5,935
Total workforce: 6,427
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#24 (Tie)
Ware
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.9%
Unemployed: 394
Employed: 4,611
Total workforce: 5,005
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#24 (Tie)
West Boylston
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 7.9%
Unemployed: 259
Employed: 3,035
Total workforce: 3,294
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#21 (Tie)
Brimfield
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 8.0%
Unemployed: 152
Employed: 1,745
Total workforce: 1,897
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#21 (Tie)
Templeton
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 8.0%
Unemployed: 305
Employed: 3,520
Total workforce: 3,825
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#21 (Tie)
Westminster
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 8.0%
Unemployed: 297
Employed: 3,417
Total workforce: 3,714
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#19 (Tie)
North Brookfield
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 8.1%
Unemployed: 195
Employed: 2,224
Total workforce: 2,419
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#19 (Tie)
Palmer
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 8.1%
Unemployed: 508
Employed: 5,772
Total workforce: 6,280
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#18
Warren
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 8.4%
Unemployed: 209
Employed: 2,271
Total workforce: 2,480
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#17
West Brookfield
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 8.6%
Unemployed: 155
Employed: 1,652
Total workforce: 1,807
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#15 (Tie)
Royalston
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 8.7%
Unemployed: 52
Employed: 547
Total workforce: 599
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#15 (Tie)
Webster
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 8.7%
Unemployed: 723
Employed: 7,569
Total workforce: 8,292
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#13 (Tie)
Brookfield
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 8.8%
Unemployed: 163
Employed: 1,695
Total workforce: 1,858
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#13 (Tie)
Millville
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 8.8%
Unemployed: 158
Employed: 1,642
Total workforce: 1,800
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#11 (Tie)
Barre
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 8.9%
Unemployed: 244
Employed: 2,510
Total workforce: 2,754
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#11 (Tie)
Worcester
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 8.9%
Unemployed: 7,562
Employed: 77,653
Total workforce: 85,215
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#9 (Tie)
Ashby
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 9.0%
Unemployed: 149
Employed: 1,503
Total workforce: 1,652
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#9 (Tie)
Orange
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 9.0%
Unemployed: 332
Employed: 3,356
Total workforce: 3,688
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#7 (Tie)
Blackstone
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 9.2%
Unemployed: 488
Employed: 4,824
Total workforce: 5,312
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#7 (Tie)
Clinton
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 9.2%
Unemployed: 676
Employed: 6,652
Total workforce: 7,328
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#6
Winchendon
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 9.3%
Unemployed: 453
Employed: 4,407
Total workforce: 4,860
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#5
Leominster
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 9.6%
Unemployed: 1,937
Employed: 18,141
Total workforce: 20,078
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#3 (Tie)
Southbridge
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 9.9%
Unemployed: 787
Employed: 7,127
Total workforce: 7,914
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#3 (Tie)
Gardner
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 9.9%
Unemployed: 934
Employed: 8,514
Total workforce: 9,448
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#2
Fitchburg
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 10.0%
Unemployed: 1,829
Employed: 16,435
Total workforce: 7,914
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#1
Athol
Unemployment rate, August 2013: 10.5%
Unemployed: 543
Employed: 4,647
Total workforce: 5,190
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