November A Big Job Loss Month In The U.S.

U.S. employers cut 533,000 jobs in November, pushing the unemployment rate to 6.7%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said, the fastest pace of job loss in more than three decades.

The November job cutting was dramatically worse than expected, with estimates by economists ranging from 220,000 to 470,000, with a median forecast of 333,000 job cuts, according to a Bloomberg survey. The cuts last month came from a variety of sectors — manufacturing, construction, financials, retail, travel and tourism. Only a few areas recorded employment gains, including education, health care and government. The unemployment rate rose from 6.5% in October.

Companies cite reasons for the cuts as trying to preserve profits and/or minimize losses, at a time when consumer demand is abruptly drying up and banks are tightening lending standards. During the 1990-91 recession, the worst month saw only 306,000 lost jobs. The 2001 recession’s worst month showed a loss of 325,000 jobs.

The U.S. economy lost 431,000 jobs in May 1980, which was the worst month of the back-to-back recessions of 1980-82. If it’s any comfort, November’s showing was better than the recession month of December 1974, when the economy lost a staggering 602,000 jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. ❖