195,000 new jobs were created, say the latest government employment figures. In fact, since the start of 2013 we’ve added over 500,000 part-time jobs. And the media breathlessly plays up these figures as evidence that the economy is really picking up steam.
But what those reports failed to emphasize is that we are only adding part-time jobs. 360,000 part-time jobs appeared last month, but "as for full-time jobs, well, we LOST 240,000 last month."
Guess what kind of numbers are required, for a true economic recovery? "At least 90,000 new full-time jobs PER MONTH to maintain employment levels based on population growth." This isn't happening.
And what kind of full-time jobs are we retaining? Consider a full-time job at Mcdonald's. McDonald's unwittingly acknowledges in its new "budget journal" for employees that it's virtually impossible to live off McDonald's wages. Explains Monica Nikelsburg in her article, Even McDonald's says McDonald's employees need a second job, "The McDonald's budget expects employees to earn $955 a month at a second job, to supplement the $1,105 earned at McDonald's." The McDonald's budget "by the way, doesn't account for heating or groceries."
Meanwhile, these days, "un-organized" fast food workers are fighting back. Every such incident gets a lot of press, making things worse for a company that has recently seen a string of highly publicized strikes in the nation's largest city. As a heat wave hit New York City today, a McDonald's worker was taken to the hospital for heat stroke. Her colleagues walked off the job in solidarity.