10.7 Million Americans Are Still Unemployed“”Rate Stays Flat At 6.7% As Job Market Recovery Stalls

10.7 Million Americans Are Still Unemployed“”Rate Stays Flat At 6.7% As Job Market Recovery Stalls

Topline

The United States lost 140,000 jobs in December, according to data released by the Labor Department Friday—much worse than economists expected and marking the first monthly increase in employment since the pandemic forced millions of job losses in April. 

People wait in line to receive food at a distribution site at a Bronx church on in New York City.



Getty Images

Key Facts





The unemployment rate remained flat at 6.7% in December, as compared to November; the metric hit a record high of 14.7% in April.





There are now 10.7 million unemployed people in the United States, compared to 10.9 million in November, the government said.





The number of permanent job losers ticked down by 348,000 in December to about 3.3 million–about three times prepandemic levels.







In addition to the unexpected job losses, the labor force participation rate remained flat at 61.5%–meaning there are still 7.3 million people in America who still want a job but are not actively seeking employment.