According to the United States Department of Labor, Labor Day “is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.”

While American Workers have contributed to our country’s overall strength and prosperity, in the current economic climate, the prosperity of the American worker is threatened by the staggering national unemployment rate.

The United States Department of Labor reported the economy added 67,000 jobs last month. But despite additions to the number of jobs in the economy, the unemployment rate increased at the end of August, up from 9.5% to now 9.6%.

So if we are adding jobs to the economy, how come unemployment is simultaneously increasing?

The Obama Administration is quick to point out that economy has had a net increase in jobs the last eight consecutive months. However, as the Christian Science Monitor explains, adding more jobs than we lose does not necessarily drive the overall unemployment rate down.

…if the whole economy, including government, ticked along at a pace of 100,000 job gains per month, it wouldn’t be fast enough to account for natural demographic growth in the labor force. A rising population means about that many new people should be entering the workforce each month.

So even if the economy continues to add jobs, if it does not add enough jobs to outpace the natural rise in the labor force, than we may very well continue to see unemployment increase.

While Labor Day is traditionally the day we celebrate the American worker, in this economic climate, the only celebration the American worker is looking for is work itself.

Photo credit: Jeff Kubina