Neel Kashkari, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, on Thursday said Friday’s jobs report will likely understate the real unemployment picture in the United States and that the country should steel itself for a “long, gradual” recovery.
“It asks people are you actively looking for work? And a lot of people who have just lost their jobs and were all sheltering in place — they’re not actively looking for work,” Mr. Kashkari, who oversaw the Treasury Department’s bank bailout program after the 2008 Wall Street crash, said on NBC’s “Today” show.
He said the Friday jobs report that covers April will likely show an unemployment rate of 16% or 17%, but that the real number is around 23% or 24%.
“It’s devastating,” Mr. Kashkari said.
“I’m hopeful that we can bounce back,” he said. “I don’t think we’re actually headed for another Great Depression.”
Mr. Kashkari said the U.S. is likely in for a “long, gradual recovery.”
Over the last six weeks, about 30 million people in the U.S. have filed for unemployment, which translates to close to 20% of the American workforce.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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