LoginThe unemployment rate in the United States recently fell below 8 percent in September for the first time since early 2009.
The latest data from the U.S. Department of Labor revealed that the unemployment rate stood at 7.8 percent, 0.3 percent lower than the rate last month. The 114,000 jobs added during that time meant that the total number of unemployed in the U.S. fell to 12.1 million. One sector that saw major improvements was manufacturing, which added 16,000 jobs.
"I'm not sure there's a great, one-size-fits-all Washington policy for reducing unemployment," said Greg Acs, director of the Income and Benefits Policy Center at the Urban Institute, a Washington think-tank, in an interview with with MoneyWatch. "One thing that could help are initiatives at the local level that bring employers and community colleges together to develop programs and curricula to get local workforces up to speed with the skills employers want.
While the news is considered a positive step forward, there have been some indications that the job market will continue to struggle. A report from Challenger Gray & Christmas found that employers were making plans to cut layoff 33,816 in September, 4.9 percent higher than anticipated layoffs last month.
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