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Content about Hilda Solis

July 31, 2012
The Numbers: Opinions Vary on Meaning of Recent Employment Figures

CHICAGO — Most indicators show economic downturn in second quarter

CHICAGO — WHILE A POSITIVE SPIN came from Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis in July regarding the current state of the U.S. labor market, others were considerably more pessimistic.

In a statement, Solis says, “Our nation’s labor market added 80,000 jobs in the month of June, while the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 8.2%. We have seen 28 straight months of private-sector job growth, during which time our economy has added back close to 4.4 million private-sector jobs, with nearly one million jobs added this year.”

For the other side, Kathy Bostjancic, director of macroeconomic analysis with The Conference Board, a global, independent business membership and research association, comments, “The slow labor market improvement … once again confirms that the better payroll increases in the beginning of the year were another false start. The pullback marks the third straight disappointing year.”

April 12, 2012
The Numbers: Stock Market Strong While Unemployment Holds Steady

CHICAGO — Mid-March found the stock market posting its best day of the year

CHICAGO — MID-MARCH FOUND THE STOCK MARKET posting its best day of the year, with the Dow Jones closing at its highest level since 2007 and the Nasdaq composite closing above 3,000 for the first time since December 2000.

While the unemployment rate held steady at 8.3%—a three-year low—the number of private-sector jobs continued to increase. With a jump of 233,000 jobs in February, more than 3.9 million jobs have been added to the U.S. workforce.

“We’ve had 24 straight months of private-sector job growth,” says Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis. “U.S. job growth over the last six months has been the strongest since before the recession began in 2006.” Experts say, however, that it will take another five years to gain pre-recession employment figures.

MORTGAGE APPLICATIONS WERE DOWN for the week ending March 2, decreasing 1.2% from the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. Along with that news, RealtyTrac showed new foreclosures were up 2.89% from December 2011 to January 2012.

October 24, 2011
The Numbers: September Produces Improvements in Job Growth, Unemployment Claims

CHICAGO — Both U.S. job growth and unemployment claims experienced slight improvements in September.

Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis reported on the September job growth, saying, “Non-farm payroll employment added 137,000 private-sector jobs, exceeding expectations, and total non-farm payroll jobs grew by 103,000. Additionally, the reported July and August jobs numbers were revised significantly upward, meaning that we added 99,000 more jobs during those two months than previously was reported. The unemployment rate remained at 9.1%.”

Solis added that 2.6 million jobs have been created over 19 consecutive months of private-sector growth.

Her department also reported that for the week ending Sept. 24, initial claims for unemployment insurance decreased by 37,000, to a seasonally adjusted total of 391,000. The number is the lowest since the beginning of April. The four-week average dropped as well, the first time in six weeks, to 417,000.