The unemployment rate for Asian workers and Black men increases in November, while the overall rate decreases.

• Last month, the overall unemployment rate decreased by 0.2% to 3.7%, contrary to predictions that it would remain unchanged at 3.9%.
• Meanwhile, the unemployment rate for Asian Americans increased by 0.4 percentage points to 3.5%.
• Last month, the unemployment rate for Black Americans, who have the highest jobless percentage in the U.S., remained unchanged at 5.8%.

In November, data from the U.S. Department of Labor showed that the labor market worsened for both Asian and Black workers.

Last month, the unemployment rate decreased by 0.2% to 3.7%, despite predictions that it would remain unchanged at 3.9%. Additionally, the labor force participation rate increased to 62.8%, accompanied by an addition of 532,000 workers to the labor force.

The jobless rate for white Americans decreased by 0.2 percentage points to 3.3%, while the unemployment rate for Hispanic Americans also decreased by 0.2 percentage points to 4.6%.

While Asian Americans experienced a 0.4 percentage-point increase in their unemployment rate to 3.5%, their participation rate decreased from 65.3% to 65% in October.

According to Elise Gould, senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute, the increase in unemployment is not due to an influx of Asian workers into the job market, but rather to a decline in both participation and employment.

The unemployment rate for Black Americans remained unchanged at 5.8% last month, while the jobless rate for Black men aged 20 and above increased by 1.1 percentage points to 6.4% from October's 5.3%. However, this increase was due to an increase in the participation rate for this group, which rose from 67.5% to 69.2%.

Gould stated that the increase in unemployment is due to an increase in optimistic workers returning or entering the labor market, resulting in both employment and unemployment.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, Black Americans experienced a greater impact from business shutdowns, resulting in a higher unemployment rate for Black workers. In 2020, the unemployment rate for Black workers reached a peak of 16.8%, compared to the overall unemployment rate's April 2020 high of 14.7%.

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