re: #66 palomino

Yes, the labor force participation rate declined this month, offsetting some of the gains from the addition of 288,000 jobs. Viewed out of context, that sounds bad.

But here’s the context: the participation rate has been dropping steadily since 1999, when it peaked. [Embedded image]

Not surprisingly, the biggest drop was 2007-2008 during the Great Recession.

And it will continue to drop as Boomers retire from the workforce. But that won’t stop wingnuts from harping on the drops…at least until a Republican is in the White House, when they’ll remember that they didn’t give a damn about such statistics when the last Republican was in office.