Indicator says U.S. unemployment up
A report from ADP, normally seen as a predictor of the Labor Department's unemployment report, says the private sector shed 742,000 jobs in March. Global companies based in the U.S. are having a particularly hard time. Jeremy Hobson reports.
Job seeker at a job fair (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
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Renita Jablonski: President Obama tried this morning in London to rally world leaders to come together to fix the global economy. This hour, we have more evidence of just how tough things are at the moment. A new report from employment services firm ADP says the private sector shed 742,000 jobs in March. Marketplace's Jeremy Hobson has more from New York.
Jeremy Hobson: The ADP report is seen as a predictor of the Labor Department's monthly unemployment report, which is due out on Friday. If the two line up, it'll mean the nation's job picture is still getting worse, losing in excess of 650,000 jobs a month.
Global companies based in the U.S. are having a particularly difficult time as demand drops worldwide. Minnesota-based 3M, the maker of Scotch tape, is cutting another 1,200 jobs.
3M CEO George Buckley spoke with Minnesota Public Radio yesterday:
George Buckley: You can never promise that if the economy continues to get a lot worse, that more wouldn't be needed. But we're hopeful that we're coming to an end of this kind of phase of our restructuring.
The employment number is seen as a lagging economic indicator. But it's also seen as the most important one, since a job means a paycheck, an ability to pay bills and a boost in confidence about the future.
In New York, I'm Jeremy Hobson for Marketplace.
Comments
Comment | Refresh
04/01/2009
I guess the stimulus funding for the sustainable energy sector seems too small for its significance to generate jobs.
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