Unemployment Applications Tick Upward, 10.1 million new jobs, Tech Layoffs and Reshoring

232,000 unemployment benefits applications for the week ending May 27 ticked upward. The article US applications for unemployment benefits tick up slightly as labor market remains healthy discusses the concepts and states that the U.S. economy added 10.1 million job openings at a time when unemployment is low (You would think this would create upward pressure on wages?). 

Increase jobs at a time when unemployment is low will likely put some emphasis on the need to increase production as well as find creative ways of lattice supply chain development where U.S. workers are at the highest return on value location in the production system.

Tech industry had some recent lay offs but it appears that at this point the market can still absorb most of those workers. I have a friend in the tech industry that got hit a week or so ago with a lay off notice. He says that the market is global so if he can't find a job in the U.S. he may relocate to Europe. His assessment is that the market is still ok but he would need to be flexible with the type of work he finds.

Unemployment by State. Michigan 3.8%

Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment Summary May 31st, 2023

After reviewing the unemployment rates one can also then consider how offshoring is contributing to this 10.1 million job openings. I could go on and on about why that might be happening from a transactional economic approach but it is ultimately a result of changes in the market winds and some of that comes from increased pace of transactions globally through digital transformation.

Read Firms are bringing production back home because of the Ukraine war, China’s slowdown — and TikTok