As was pointed out earlier today the 10% level of unemployment has now been breached. The unemployment level in the United States is now higher than it has been in the last 26 years. In October the economy shed another 190,000 jobs, bringing the total number of jobs lost to 7.3 million since the recession began. The construction sector lost another 62,000 jobs and manufacturing lost another 61,000 jobs last month.

The debate is now raging on Wall Street. Some economists and analysts are saying that this is your typical labor market lagging the overall economic recovery, while others are saying that this economy that is not producing any jobs is becoming a real threat to the overall recovery. The White House economic advisors are saying that this is the typical pattern and investors and consumers should not be too concerned just yet, but there is definitely increasing amount of worry surrounding the unemployment situation.The breaching of 10% is pretty important psychologically for many people who are looking for a job. Many wonder if this level will discourage them and keep them from trying to look for a job.

It is definitely true that the labor market lags the overall economy in a typical recovery, but is this getting to be a troubling sign? As of now the labor market has still improved from where it was a few months ago, but the fact that it can’t get over the hump and create any jobs is certainly worrisome. The construction sector that is supposed to be reaping the benefits of the stimulus package and all the projects associated with it continues to get hurt quite badly. More and more Americans are being forced to work part-time to try to make a living, which is definitely not a good sign. The labor market seems to be stuck in the mud right now, and I think if this happens for too many more months it could threaten the overall economic recovery. Without a jobs recovery there will be no real recovery.