The missing millions
Rising disability claims may explain America’s shrinking labour force
IN THE early 1980s the distressing persistence of high unemployment in Europe was labelled “Eurosclerosis”. Some now wonder whether “Amerisclerosis” is the right word to describe America’s labour market. It is true that unemployment has slowly dropped from a peak of 10% in late 2009, to 7.3% at present. But this decline overstates the health of the jobs market.
This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline “The missing millions”
From the September 28th 2013 edition
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