“Unemployment Total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 243,000 in January, and the
unemployment rate decreased to 8.3 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Job growth was widespread in the private sector, with large employment gains in professional and business services, leisure and hospitality, and manufacturing. Government employment changed little over the month” February 3, 2012 http://www.bls.gov/cps/
Small gains are great gains. We have to celebrate every step forward we take. We accept these gains with understanding that unemployment numbers fluctuate and will continue to do so over the next several years as we pull ourselves out of economic ditch we created in our country.
While Michigan remains at the higher end of the unemployment spectrum, the Detroit Regional Workforce Fund tries to use best practices in its approach to sector partnerships. Demand should drive workforce partnerships wherever possible. We use this data to determine where to put our energy. We have budding workforce partnership in hospitality (investment in R.O.C. United- see our post yesterday for more on R.O.C.) and have been exploring manufacturing to see if we can add value to workforce activities already going on in the region. We remain focused on low-skilled individuals’ connection to opportunity. This slight uptick, is a small ray of sunshine between the clouds. Let’s hope the sun continues to emerge!
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