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Dark Cloud on Our Horizon

I agree with Bob Herbert that we need to treat unemployment as a crisis. It is at least as serious as the banking and mortgage crises. Herbert, in his most recent column notes:

“By May 2009,” according to the Center for Labor Market Studies at Northeastern University in Boston, “the total number of underutilized workers had increased dramatically from 15.63 million to 29.37 million — a rise of 13.7 million, or 88 percent. Nearly 30 million working-age individuals were underutilized in May 2009, the largest number in our nation’s history. The overall labor underutilization rate in May 2009 had risen to 18.2 percent, its highest value in 26 years.”

The Obama administration has been a major disappointment as far as labor is concerned. Hardly surprising since the folks in charge of the economy are the usual suspects, among those guilty of putting us in this situation.

A society without sufficient jobs at decent wages is an unjust society. If Obama lacks the will or the ability to lead us toward a just society then there is no good reason to support his administration or the Democrats. I hope organized labor will keep this in mind when the next election rolls around.

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