Fired, Not Hired

Healthy labor markets consist of many things including low rates of involuntary termination and high rates of hiring. Usually they’re highly correlated. Not now. First time unemployment insurance claims at 332,000/week are at levels last seen in 11/07 before the Great Recession. Yet total hires at 4.2 million in June are now where they were in late 2008, during the worst of the Great Recession; 25% below the 11/07 level!