ANALYSIS/OPINION:
The U.S. Department of Labor is expected to release on Friday the latest unemployment/employment/jobless rates, but don’t expect those numbers to remain static for the remainder of 2017. The clouds of Hurricane Harvey already have seen to that.
At this juncture, it’s too early to even guesstimate the number of hands, minds and dollars it’s going to take to rebuild the Gulf Coast.
Right here, right now, though, there’s a snapshot of where we are this Labor Day and where job seekers can go to achieve gainful employment prior to Labor Day 2018.
• The national unemployment rate for July is 4.3 percent.
• The Commonwealth of Virginia’s unemployment rate ticked up from 3.7 in June to 3.8 in July.
• The state of Maryland’s unemployment rate dropped from 4.1 percent in June to 4 percent in July.
• In Texas, the unemployment rate fell from 4.6 percent in June to 4.3 percent in July.
• In Louisiana, the unemployment rate fell slightly from 5.4 percent in June to 5.3 percent in July.
• In the nation’s capital, a building boom continues to draw daily commuters from as far away as West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware and New Jersey.
The D.C. Department of Employment Services website shows that the unemployment rate in June hit double digits in Ward 7 (10.7 percent) and Ward 8 (13.2 percent). (The latter is three times the national rate of 4.4 percent in June.) Preliminary numbers for July show that unemployment rose in all eight wards.
That’s a look-see at the here and now, and it’s fairly bleak.
Still, it’s important to keep your eyes on prospects that lie ahead — the opportunities for the unemployed and underemployed are endless.
As people around the world continue to dip and dig into their wallets to donate to the recovery for Harvey survivors, look at some of the heavy lifting that human hands must do.
Think J-O-B-S at every bulleted item.
• By the tens of thousands, homes, buildings, bridges, roads and factories will be demolished and/or reconstructed.
• The funky water currently flowing means that massive cleanups will involve more than a gallon of Clorox at hospitals, nursing homes, schools, day care centers, jails, police stations, firehouses, restaurants, parks, community centers and libraries.
• The materials and inventories to restock Gulf Coast businesses include sheetrock, drywall and roofing materials, flooring, electrical products, and plumbing and HVAC systems.
• Computers, cellphones, laptops and the servers will need technicians to service them, to be sure.
• The Gulf Coast energy industry eventually will be up and running (and, hopefully, lowering our prices at the pump).
• Water-logged and damaged cars and trucks must be hauled out so that new ones can be hauled in (just as dealerships’ 2018 vehicles hit the showrooms).
Much of the work that must be done is the Mike Rowe kind of work, “Dirty Jobs,” and you don’t have to be a man to do it, either.
If you prefer the kind of work that isn’t too rough on your mani-pedi, picture yourself as a gloved one in the hospitality industry or behind a chair to specialize on hair, nails and makeup.
The jobs are there and will be for a long time to come.
You read the facts, now comes the preaching.
Ex-felons who want to make themselves and their families whole should get on a computer and apply for job along Harvey’s route.
If you’re a single mom or dad who is tired of trying to squeeze a dollar out of a deadbeat parent, prepare to hit the road.
If you’re looking for the American dream and want to ride a wave to a new beginning, there’s plenty to consider in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi.
Remember, more than 100,000 Hispanic immigrants poured into the Gulf Coast area after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita ripped the region in 2007, and many of those immigrants were undocumented.
The hurricane season isn’t over until it’s time to start thinking about Thanksgiving dinner. I hear you.
The warning for jobless folks and job seekers, though, is in the queue just like the warning for then-Tropical Storm Harvey was.
Sometimes, the first mark on the self-help compass is the same as the first mark on the moral compass.
Politicians and poverty pimps want you to think otherwise. Indeed, they wager that you don’t even know how to read a compass.
Good luck!
• Deborah Simmons can be contacted at dsimmons@washingtontimes.com.
• Deborah Simmons can be reached at dsimmons@washingtontimes.com.
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