Fast-rising unemployment rates for Black and young workers, whom economic downturns typically hit first and hardest, will make it tougher for the Trump administration to shrug off signs of a slowing labor market.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics said Friday the unemployment rate for Black workers in August was 7.5%, up from 6.1% a year ago, while the unemployment rate for workers between 16 and 24 was 10.5% — a nearly four-year high.
“These are corners of labor that are much more sensitive than prime working-age Americans or white Americans to small fluctuations in demand,” economist Guy Berger said. “Maybe some of this is overdone and it will reverse partly — but it’s a pretty big move in a short time … it is almost certainly indicative that things are getting worse.”
Meanwhile, underemployment is at its highest rate since 2021.