2017 was a successful year for the working American. With over 2 million jobs added, President Trump can certainly put that figure at one point of success.
Unemployment remained a stable 4.1% during the year, which is the lowest it has been in the past 17 years. Wages increased by 2.5% when compared to 2016, although the increase is not fast enough for some, that still feel the bite of recession.
Actual jobs increased by 184,000 in December 2017, which is constant growth, for now, the 87th month.
When we look to see where the jobs are being added, we find that the sectors President Trump wanted to strengthen took up his call. Manufacturing increased by 2 million jobs in 2017; construction increased by 210,000 and Healthcare increased by 300,000 jobs. Another indicator of the growth in industry and service is the increase in the Bars and Restaurants were an additional 250,000 jobs increased this sector. When the food hospitality service industry grows, it’s a sign that more people can afford to eat out, including citizens and tourists.
A sector that was hit was retail, with a loss of 67,000 jobs in 2017, which points to the online shopping effect, something we expect to see continues. We expect to see an increase in gig economy part-time workers.
The number of part-time workers that wish to work full time is around 5 million, and this is still high, but it has come down a lot since its high in 2010 where it reached 9.1 million. Part-time workers tend to live just around the poverty line, so a significant decrease in this number is needed to help reduce this problem area.
With wages being unattractive, around 54% of small businesses seeking professional employees stated that it was hard to find applicants. This will most probably lead to wage rises as incentives will be created by business to attract quality professionals.
2018 is expected to continue the trend, and with Trump’s recent call to enable offshore drilling for oil and gas, this industrial sector will start to generate massive calls for jobs in a wide section of professions.
