The jobs market is very strong, but where are the workers to fill the jobs that are out there?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics “household survey” released on Friday showed that more people left the workforce in September than entered. About 5 million people are missing from the labor force compared to pre-pandemic. Adjusting for these missing workers reveals an unemployment rate that is officially 3.8% is closer to between 6.3% and 6.8%.

What kinds of jobs were added in September?

Part-time jobs. The economy lost full-time jobs. Over the last three months, part-time jobs have jumped by 1.2 million while full-time jobs have fallen by 700,000. That’s the biggest drop in full-time jobs since the lockdowns of 2020.

It reminds us of the saying: the jobs market is so good that I have three of them.