Payrolls Fall More Than Forecast, Unemployment Rises

Employers in the U.S. cut 467,000 jobs in June, the unemployment rate rose and hourly earnings stagnated, offering little evidence the Obama administration’s stimulus package is shoring up the labor market.

The payroll decline was more than forecast and followed a 322,000 drop in May, according to Labor Department figures released today in Washington. The jobless rate jumped to 9.5 percent, the highest since August 1983, from 9.4 percent.

Unemployment is projected to keep rising for the rest of the year just as the income boost from the stimulus package fades, undermining prospects for a sustained rebound in household purchases, analysts said. As companies from General Motors Corp. to Kimberly-Clark Corp. cut costs, the lack of jobs will restrain growth.

“This will be another jobless recovery,” said John Silvia, chief economist at Wachovia Corp. in Charlotte, North Carolina. “We may get positive economic growth driven largely by federal spending, but people on the street will say, ‘Where are the jobs?’”

Stocks slid after the report, with the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index dropping 2.2 percent to 903.43 at 10:16 a.m. in New York. Treasuries rose, sending yields on benchmark 10-year notes to 3.512 percent from 3.538 percent late yesterday.

Unemployment Claims

The number of Americans filing claims for unemployment benefits last week fell in line with forecasts, Labor also said, indicating firings remain elevated. Initial jobless claims dropped by 16,000 to 614,000 in the week ended June 27, from a revised 630,000 the week before. Full Story........

YRC Worldwide Announces Partnership With Army Reserve

Cooperative Agreement Builds Careers, Economy

YRC Worldwide Inc. today announced that it has finalized an agreement with the U.S. Army Reserve to work collaboratively to enhance job opportunities for soldiers and veterans.

Under the agreement formally known as the Army Reserve Employer Partnership Initiative (EPI), YRC Worldwide joins hundreds of employers throughout the U.S. pledging to work with the military to identify and hire qualified job applicants. As an EPI member, YRC Worldwide will provide postings of all applicable jobs to all 20 U.S. Army Reserve locations.

Jim Kissinger, Executive Vice President of Human Resources for YRC Worldwide, met with Army Reserve leaders in Kansas City, Mo., to sign the formal EPI agreement, and said it is an extension of outreach efforts already under way to hire veterans.

"We've hired a significant number of veterans, and we have found that military experience is a good fit for many of the opportunities we have," Kissinger said. "We've also found that the Army provides excellent training in the field of logistics and transportation."

Maj. Gen. Mari K. Ender, deputy chief, U.S. Army Reserve, said she was pleased to have the opportunity to establish enduring strategic partnerships with YRC Worldwide and other employers. "I look forward to collaborating with our newest valued partners to achieve mutual goals to attract, develop and retain a quality workforce," she said.

Since April 2008, more than 300 public and private employers have joined the EPI, including Fortune 500 companies, hospitals, industry associations, state agencies and local police departments.

W.Va. labor unions pick up members in 2008, report says

Labor union membership in West Virginia increased last year, according to an annual federal survey.

About 101,000 employed workers in West Virginia -- 13.8 percent of the total -- were members of a labor union in 2008, according to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. In comparison, about 97,000 or 13.3 percent of employed workers in the state were members of a labor union the year before, the bureau said.

Kenny Perdue, president of the West Virginia AFL-CIO, said, "I think there was a gain in just about every union. I know the service industry has increased, such as in health care. There was an increase with the Teamsters in their organizing of Overnight Trucking. As I look at those numbers I think of the American Federation of Teachers, which brought the West Virginia school service personnel in. That may not show up yet. Those are jobs in the public sector.

"There has been a continuous effort to organize in West Virginia," Perdue said. "It has not stopped and it will not stop. It is our belief that workers want respect in the workplace. Typically it only comes from being involved in a union. We do think workers want to better themselves and have a decent wage and pension and health care. It is going to be our effort to give them that chance."

The percentage of employed workers in West Virginia who carry a union card has fluctuated in recent years, from a low of 13.1 percent in 2003 to a high of 14.4 percent in 2005.

Perdue said declines can be traced to the loss of large unionized manufacturers, such as steel mills in the Northern Panhandle and chemical plants in the Kanawha Valley. Those businesses offer good-paying jobs with health care benefits and pensions, but many of those jobs "are gone maybe forever," he said. "That's not only a loss for our membership but for the per capita income in West Virginia. It hurts across the board." Full Story..........