More good news against the din of derangement. From the AP: "Weekly applications for jobless aid are a proxy for layoffs. The data suggests employers are confident enough about the economy to hold onto their workers. The unemployment claims data is one of the few economic reports still being released by the government because the Labor Department was funded before the shutdown and is still open."
That makes this an 'employee economy' because "Many companies are desperate for workers to respond to solid customer demand,..." (hint, hint furloughed federal employees).
And what about those furloughed federal employees. Aren't their unemployment claims throwing a sabo into the gears of this unemployment nirvana?
"The tally of furloughed federal employees requesting unemployment aid jumped to 25,419, more than double the previous week. Those figures are tracked in a separate category and aren’t included in the overall figures."
Is 'separate category' dogwhistle for lies, damn lies, and statistics? Not so fast, Mark Twain.
Private companies are in business to make a profit, not provide jobs. Employees are a cost of doing business that is figured into goods or services. Low unemployment indicates a robust economy and rising GDP that really does lift all boats. Stockholders and employees alike benefit.
A robust economy also means robust tax revenue for government - which is not in business to make a profit because government doesn't produce anything. It simply consumes money out of the economy to sustain itself. Government employees aren't an indicator of economic health - good, bad, or ugly. They're simply an indicator of the expense associated with government that the private sector must figure into its own cost of doing business.
And that's why there is a separate category.
