Chart of the week: Nearly five unemployed workers for every available job

wapowa_chart_2009-05-13

Source: Economic Policy Institute

Meteor Blades puts this chart in context:

The current recession has now begun its 17th month. It’s already longer than any recession since the 1930s. If it were to end this month and the unemployment rate started dropping in line with the average timing of the two most recent recoveries, it would mean no relief for the jobless until Christmas 2011. And that would only mark the beginning of a drop in the unemployment rate.

  • Leave a Reply

More To Read

August 10, 2026

Buy, Borrow, Die: How tax codes gut community well-being to line pockets of the wealthy

We are long overdue for a tax code that requires the ultra-wealthy to pay what they owe.

July 30, 2026

What the Millionaires Tax would mean for Washington

We’re not paying the benefits of economic growth forward like we used to. The Millionaires Tax can change that.

July 9, 2026

How will the Millionaires Tax impact us?

The Millionaires Tax adds critical revenue to our state budget and starts to rebalance our upside-down tax code.