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Jobless rate jumps to 13.1 percent in December
Published Friday, Jan. 22, 2010 | 6:52 a.m.
Updated Friday, Jan. 22, 2010 | 7:06 a.m.
Sun Coverage
CARSON CITY – Unemployment rose in the Las Vegas area in December to 13.1 percent, the 12th straight month of double digit joblessness in Southern Nevada.
There were 128,200 people who were unemployed, up 9,400 from November. The jobless rate had fallen two straight months in the Las Vegas area, until last month.
Bill Anderson, chief economist for the state Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation, said the figures cast “further doubt on the likelihood for a near-term economic recovery in Nevada.”
“The much anticipated opening of CityCenter in Las Vegas failed to be the immediate catalyst the leisure and hospitality industry needed to stop the evaporation of jobs,” Anderson said.
The department said the unemployment rate statewide rose to 13 percent in December after two months of a decline. It registered 12.3 percent in November. There were an estimated 176,000 people who were jobless last month.
Nevada’s rate compares to the national rate of 10 percent.
Anderson said “December marked the end of a historically bad year for Nevada’s economy” with employers shedding an additional 12,500 jobs in December.
In the Las Vegas area, total employment for the month registered 853,700.
Compared to December 2008, construction employment in Southern Nevada fell from 86,600 to 63,000 last month. The number of those employed in hotels and casinos dropped from 170,300 to 146,200 in a year-to-year comparison.
Manufacturing employment last month reported 22,900 jobs compared to 25,600 in December 2008. And utilities, transportation and trade had 154,500 workers last month compared to 166,600 in December 2008 in Southern Nevada.
The department said the unemployment rate in Washoe County leaped from 11.3 percent in November to 12.7 percent in December. Carson City’s rate rose from 11.2 percent in November to 12.7 percent in December.
Anderson said the current employment recession has now surpassed all recessions in the modern era in terms of depth and length. The previous worst was in the early 1980s, which lasted 18 months and the job loss was 4.5 percent year-over-year. The current downturn, he said, is now two years old and employment has fallen by greater than 6 percent.
“Despite the length and depth of the downturn, Nevada’s job market will likely worsen in the months ahead,” said Anderson, who is to present his forecast today to the Economic Forum that meets to predict future tax revenues of the state.
He said for the second year in a row, holiday hiring came in below the long-term average. Typically, the retail industry temporarily hires about 6,000 between October and December for the Christmas shopping season. This year, he said the industry added just 3,000 workers statewide.
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Thank you Steven Horsford and Barbara Buckley! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
You guys make even Jim Gibbons look competent.
"Despite the length and depth of the downturn, Nevada's job market will likely worsen in the months ahead,". So what exactly are the potentates in CC and DC going to do about it? So far they've ALL been woefully ineffective if not outright irresponsible. Reid, Gibbons, Buckley, et al have simply been in politics too long and lack the ability to be effective when times are tough -- any monkey can run things when times are good if you have enough bananas -- and they need to retire or move on to something else.
This place is in a mess thanks to the 'look the other way while their pals made huge bucks in real estate, mortgage lending, construction and development' Politicos.
Government is rife with these types from top to bottom.
And Harry the Horrible thinks he is going to be reelected HA! He was too busy trying to shove the hated and unwanted health reform bill down America's throats, that he sold out Nevada down the river. Searchlight beckons!!
Did not Obama and his super-duper staff say that the if the "stimulus" was passed that the unemployment rate for the nation would be held to around 8%?
Where is Hillary?
Can we get a refund and shoe Hillary into office?
Obama is joke. He could not even run a ice cream stand.
The Oathkeepers are weird and creepy.
I wish they would go away so effecive and credible voices of the conservative movement could be heard.
Weirdos.
Reid, Pelosi, and Obama don't care, they think gov't healthcare is more important even though 70% of Americans are against it. Who voted for these clowns anyways?
Nevada's unemployment - still worse than France.
Maybe raising taxes last session WASN'T such a good idea? Especially DOUBLING the payroll tax!
Nevada desperately needs some NEW ideas for job creation. State leaders have yet to propose anything outside of the box.
Does anyone really believe that CityCenter will help to signficantly reduce unemployment in the near future? Haven't we learned anything from the past two years??
Here is a great idea,pass a state law that requires all construction workers in Nevada to pay $150.00 to be approved by OSHA in order to continue to work in Nevada.
Despite soaring unemployment, the Obama administration is unfriendly to business and does not care their polices are drowning businesses with high costs of employee health insurance, taxes, government regulations and controls that will inhibit economic growth and jobs for years. If this government remains in office, they will soon look to your assets to pay for their public programs, raising your income taxes--increasing taxes made on real estate, stock and other business transactions, confiscating your money that otherwise would be invested in the economy. Historically, after socialists get into high levels of government they thrive like cancer--targeting healthy economic markets and individuals with higher and higher taxes and regulations to fund public programs, to make Citizens dependent on government.
Sgt Rock
Lets blame the person, Bush, he started the stimulus programs. How soon you Right Wing cry babies forget. Bush ruined our country before Obama got in. The war monger.
we keep hearing about the lack of new jobs and the loss of current jobs. What exactly are these very well paid and securely employed politicians going to do to bring jobs to las vegas. There will be no change without action.. so far there is no action, just political double speak and shell games.
We pay their salaries.. why are they not held accountable when they do not manage our government well. Its time to demand action.
"Lets blame the person, Bush"
Obama has added more to the national debt in one year than Bush did in eight.
At what point are the liberals going to start taking the blame for their failed policies????
No society has EVER taxed it's way out of a recession.
I don't understand why these media outlets are reporting the new unemployment numbers with such shock...HELLO!!! City Center constructions jobs came to a end in December with the opening of the property. That light at the end of the tunnel we were all promised with the hiring of 12k employees for City Center was just washed out with the laying off of the construction works...now we are back to square one, 13.1% unemployment rate. How is this project supposed to help our city...it's NOT!
Shovel Ready Harry only cares about one job...his own!
I don't hear Gibbon's name being mentioned, does he have something to do with the state of the state? I thought that low taxes and Republicans means jobs and prosperity? Republican Governor and taxes lower than any other state except Alaska.
You also had post Xmas layoffs in retail and transportation.
Love all the comments blaming all politicians for all the economic ills ... many points are correct (yes, the current national debt is ridiculous, but yes, the economy began tanking under Bush & the lack of banking/finance regulation did not help, etc) however it is another example of Americans blaming everyone but themselves. Look in the mirror people!
Our economy is based on consumption. Buy Buy Buy Spend Spend Spend - and the obsessive consumption of the first half of the 2000s was based on a bubble, nothing solid. It burst and we're all paying the piper. People bought houses they couldn't afford, used their equity to buy crap, bought more crap on credit cards ...
How many of you complaining about government debt & spending did quite a bit of your own?
Now most people are taking a good look at where that got us, and are hunkering down, being frugal.
Our economy is in transition from the spending spree, and I doubt any politician can do much. You can't make people spend. A tax break may help a bit, but not if no one is buying the product a business sells or manufactures. You will hire, regardless of a payroll tax, if your business is thriving.
It's time for creative thinking.
Unemployment in Las Vegas should be nearing 14 percent right about the time Obama shows up next month to campaign for Harry Reid.
OH, WON'T THAT BE A PARTY!
It shows how desperate Reid is, that he has no choice but to bring in a president who has yet to help any Dem get elected. If Reid wasn't in trouble, he would tell Obama to stay home.
I find it very funny how Harry see's now that we need more jobs,than that garbadge healthcare bill.America voted very loud that they didnt want this health care crap,and voted in a republican in Mass.Not that the republican party is any better,but you libs are gone!!!Maybe there is a silver lineing at the end of the tunnel?Hopefully harry is gone in nov,and takes his kid with him?Next stop,OBOOMA YOUR NEXT!CAN ANYONE SAY,IMPEACHMENT!!!!
Where is the sense of urgency from our so called leaders regarding unemployment?? While they debate the necessity for a special session in Carson City to address the budget or repealing laws regarding education to receive grants, people go unemployed. How about a special session to create an environment where businesses might want to hire again?
And then there's Harry Reid who claims to have created 41,000 green energy jobs in Nevada. What a load of dung that is. Show me the jobs Harry!
Bush!!!!! Bush!!!!!Bush!!!!!!! He's the culprit. Him and his Dad the War Mongers!!!!!
Tell me it isn't so... How can this happen?
Our glorious Leader told us that if we passed his trillion dollar giveaway package, unemployment would never reach 8%.
Woe is me... It must be Bush's fault. Of course it Bush's fault, just like the hurricane in New Orleans and the earthquake in Haiti are all Bush's fault. When will Bush quit his ruination of this country???
Kenoking
You are blaming Bush,This economic crises is do to years of mis-judgement of corperations.Just a tid bit of American history for you.This country was admist the great depression right before World War I and the war brought us out.Then we were slipping into another economic crises just before World War II.Once again it(the war pulled us out)No I not pleased with Bush.There are a number of factors that have contributed to this recession.NAFTA we sent manufacturing jobs overseas and across boaders,OPEC we became overly dependent on foriegn oil.Our econony became dependent on other countries and their ability to raise prices on cheeper quality products.Where does over 50%of our steal come from?Overseas.Now my next finger pointing might raise a stir but they have had a huge impact on this economy since the early 80's.Unions have put the manufacturing industry in a position of having to move jobs overseas and across the boarders.Now the Unions were a great concept that went aray.Unions were developed to help the worker be treated fairly but over the years the unions became overly greedy.They saw they could make a tremendous amount of money on Union dues and secretly used their ablity to somewhat brain wash the union member into their greed and then gaining higher wages then raising union dues and slicing into the workers increase.I worked years ago for a company who was under Union control.
When I started I was virtually left no option to join.My union dues were about 20.00 a week which only adds up to .50 an hour but I saaw nothing for my 20.00 a week.The benifit packages were horible and back then I had a 2 yr old and a newborn baby that 20.00 a week would have made a significant differece to the household.That 20.00 a week back the early 80's would have covered all the formula exspense or diaper expense.What good was the union for me there was none it actually hurt me.
I really did not have to join but I was preasured into it and wish I had not.
The unfortunate thing is if manufacturing was stiil here as strong as it was in the 60's and 70's we would not be able to afford to buy anything.I am not commending Wal-Mart but they have been effectivly discouraging the unions from comming in to their company and have been able to keep cost down to the consumer by doing this.Now Wal-Mart needs to take a larger portion of their profits and bring in better benifits affordable to all their employees and they have the power to do so because of their size.
"Where is the sense of urgency from our so called leaders regarding unemployment??"
Right - there really doesn't seem to be a sense of urgency here. The only time we really discuss unemployment is when DETR releases their monthly report. All is well I guess. Wouldn't want to cause a stir and scare off any potential tourists.
Obama came up with a great solution. Told people to quit having their conventions in LV. Well it didn't work out so well for you, but it made him look better LOL!!
I stayed at the Monte Carlo last weekend. CityCenter is next door, but I didn't even bother walking over there. Looks fugly and uninviting!! I can't think of a worse idea for the Vegas strip. People got paid to design it??!!
Reid know he's in trouble. Now he appears to be bailing on Bernanke. This is awesome news. Get busy, Sun.
http://www.businessinsider.com/with-only...
With Only A 20 Percent Chance Of Winning Re-Election, Harry Reid Now "Undecided" On Bernanke
Joe Weisenthal | Jan. 22, 2010, 1:10 PM
"Today is the day that the wheels are falling off for Bernanke. He may not survive the weekend.
"Dow Jones, via CNBC, says Harry Reid is now "undecided" on Ben Bernanke (already Barbara Boxer and Russ Feingold have signaled their intention to vote "no" today).
"Why is Reid so hesitant? Maybe it's because, according to Nate Silver, his re-election odds are down to 20 percent."
.....doesn"t matter the causes for the current
high rate of unemployment. The fact is that the
American Public has discovered that "Gaming" in
Vegas is like throwing their money away. People
are still going to Vegas, but, according to
all the local polls the money being spent on the
Strip is going down monthly.
All I can say to the Las Vegans is......"welcome to the real world...sucks, doesn"t it?"
Get use to it, cause Sin City is in for a long
hard slow road to recovery.
Obama has added more to the national debt in one year than Bush did in eight....
And that is BECAUSE of Bush!!
2008 = hope and change
2010 = hope you HAVE some change
you can't tell the evil rich people that CREATE jobs that they should be punished for making money and that if they do create a job, any increase in profit will be taken away from them in higher taxes.
obama is white guilt and socialism in a good suit. nothing more. if he ran a lemonade stand he'd create a "cup tax".
Obama came up with a great solution. Told people to quit having their conventions in LV.
Sheesh!!! Obama did NOT say that! He said he did not want these companies going to Vegas ON TAXPAYER DOLLARS! If they wanted to spend their own company's profits/money to do so - fine, but do not use BAILOUT MONEY to piss away on trips to Vegas!!! Get it????
My favorite sentence in this article:
"The much anticipated opening of CityCenter in Las Vegas failed to be the immediate catalyst the leisure and hospitality industry needed to stop the evaporation of jobs," Anderson said."
Duhhhhh
Kenoking :
Your right Bush Sr. and Jr. did bring this country to war at a tremendous waste of our national wealth. But your guy Obama did NOT have to approve sending 30 thousand more troops to Afghanistan thus breaking his pledges to get our troops out of the middle East. Also there is that little matter of thirty billion dollars to fund this escalation.. The two parties are all a bunch of lying theives, accordingly, it's time for the independents to step up to the plate, win elections and do the right thing by the people of this country.
With the bottom no where in sight and affecting all income levels, we (the United States) are seeing the SPLITTING of the MASSES.The Have and the Have Not's. What we are seeing is DARWINISM (only the strongest survive).
I expect to see more of "Darwinism" in the future.
How is it controlling health care costs and providing coverage for the vast majority of Americans is a bad idea. How would it have impeded small business growth if not in fact helped it.
Let's face it Americans are stupid and simplistic in their reasoning. We have no one to blame for this mess other than ourselves. We elected Skippy Yale frat boy and all the members of a dysfunctional congress (regardless of party) whom used all the "business friendly*" tricks in the book and we as greedy selfish fools took full advantage of this immoral and unethical and most importantly, short sighted "business friendly*" climate. Pop went the bubble and everyone is suddenly a victim? Really folks, especially you conservative and libertarian types, stop pointing fingers and start taking responsibility for this mess.
*Lazy oversight, loosening existing controls, deregulation of historically abusive industries, allowing for development of monopolies, etc
KenoKing...get a life!!! Research before you make a comment like that..It started even way before bush..it started when Carter developed the Habitate for Humanity program (well documented on the books)It culminated with Bush, being in the wrong place at the wrong time..
All the Presidential candidates are sitting back going "Thank God I didn't Win !"..Obama pitched us all a great "hope story", blah, blah, blah...Regardless of democrat or republican, why focus on healthcare and all the other crap that is NOT going to help american's get back to work..he should focus on JOBS..spend the money on mid-america, small business that drives the economy...repaving the roads at $9 per hour is not going to support the country...He has had a year to show his stuff, and all the cronies in the Senate and the House, have done nothing but blow smoke..I am voting independant next time...Ron Paul - Where are you????
The Mallard opines: "Americans are stupid and simplistic in their reasoning."
Massachusetts voters woke up the nation and voters across the country will toss out the elitist liberal politicians in November...
At least Gibbons had the common sense to veto their tax bills.....Too bad the idiots overrode the veto.....
It's the Wall Street tycoons and corporate CEOs that are causing this depression. Sending good jobs overseas, keeping all the profits of our economic system for themselves. They are trying making America like Mexico, where the 1% are super-rich and the other 99% are barely getting by. Don't think that your politicans can help you, they are all cut from the same piece of cloth, paid for and in the pocket of the super-rich.
It's a scam, a con game, our political system. It's out of control and there is only one way to fix it, and that's is revolution.
"Sending good jobs overseas, keeping all the profits of our economic system for themselves."
No, it's the unions that have killed manufacturing in this country. Not the Wall Street tycoons and corporate CEOs.
Unions protect lazy incompetent workers which kill profits which then kill jobs.
Larry Vegas,
Scott Brown US Senetor Elect from Mass: Holds a JD from Boston College. Clearly not an elitist.
Since when do informational techology workers in banks have unions?
I agree that unions have hurt the auto industry to some degree. but the real cause of the decline in the America's auto industry is foreign companies made a better product AND had a cheap, State run health care system. A lot of the "benefits" of an America auto worker goes to pay for his or her medical care which is insanely expensive.
If you don't like unions then don't join one but to blame them for our current mess is unfounded.
I'm not blaming unions for the economic mess....there's plenty of blame for all parties as far as that is concerned.
I'm talking about actual manufacturing jobs that were once in the U.S. I don't have a problem with unions per se, but I feel they need to be more flexible and realize that if the company does not make a profit, the company and the union jobs will disappear.
Saltydawg and Lou Dobb talkalikes,
Is America poorer or wealthier today than 40 years ago? Yes, even including the recent recession.
Yes, the answer is wealthier. Not just as a whole, but per person. And not only do we have more money, but we have a lot better stuff to buy.
We are wealthier despite having fewer manufacturing jobs. We are wealthier because of free trade.
PRG, it depends whether you are employed or not.
Have you check the level of our national debt recently? Have you check the quality of our educational system recently? Have you check out the moral fabric our our society recently? etc.
Money and wealth don't mean a thing if our values are in the toilet.
But I'm sure glad all those asian whales like to visit Las Vegas.
Noindex... Nice clarification; this union bashing is very one-sided and misguided. But, they also must align themselves with reality.
I know understand, I dont work, but if I did, well Senior Reid what is wrong. ?? head of Senate and no jobs for Nevada. Where is our free no strings attached amnesty for citizenship?? I beginning to like Ensign, hey at least he knows whats important, WOMEN !!
Mallard, you're a stpid duck. It was never about providing health care for all Americans. It was really about having four years of cash flow to pay for their Bolivarian Revolution.
"Massachusetts voters woke up the nation and voters across the country will toss out the elitist liberal politicians in November..." - LarryVegas
Yep, we'll soon be kicking out the democrat tards and replacing them with republican tards.
/out with the old, in with the old
for the LAST time...
no jobs are "sent" overseas.
they are LOST to people that will do them cheaper.
they don't need to make $20.00 per hour so they can pay $500 for a bottle of $30.00 vodka so they can sit in the same room with kevin federline for 10 minutes.
things are going to get way, way worse in vegas before they get any better. just wait...city center WILL have layoffs at some point. you can't have unemployment go UP in 43 states last month and somehow think that's going to translate into MORE people coming to town.
Thanks, Lars!
I always knew you had my back.
Ooops, maybe that's a bad choice of words when there are republicans in the room.
Stop tapping on my foot, Lars!
/I knew I posted a bad choice of words
//now it's coming back to bite me in the ass
///crap, there I go again
Comment removed by moderator. Contained an advertisement.
Take your campaign ad someplace else, fly boy.
Hey Needle...
Did you get a chance to read my post before big brother deleted it???
Hey Lars -
Yep, that's what I was thanking you about. Not sure why it needed to be deleted.
Comment removed by moderator. Contained offensive language.
"Again, my name is Jeff Durbin MSgt USAF Ret, my website is www.ElectAVeteran.org and you can bet if I am elected HELL is coming with me"!
Watch out, people, the dog catcher is out on call. He'll take your pet in a heartbeat. Look for an El Camino with an old fool with a baseball cap and a couple of cages. Jesus, how do we produce these losers? He makes Jim "the groper" Gibbons seem responsible.
Hey Juan...
The Shady Lady Ranch is hiring gigolos. This might be right up your alley. You would not have to do anything that you don't do at home...