US chems, plastics shed jobs, unemployment jumps to 9.8%
02 October 2009 16:25 [Source: ICIS news]
HOUSTON (ICIS news)--Jobs in the US chemicals and plastics industries each declined 0.2% month over month in September while the overall US unemployment rate set another 26-year high at 9.8%, the Labor Department said on Friday.
Chemical sector job losses totalled 1,600 in September from August, bringing the seasonally-adjusted workforce total to 802,800.
That figure was 1.5% below the 814,900 employed in September 2008.
Meanwhile, job losses in the plastics and rubber sector totalled 1,100 in September from August, lowering the seasonally-adjusted workforce to 627,900.
The year-over-year decline, however, was much more pronounced in plastics than chemicals, where the 627,900 employed was 14% below the 729,700 employed in September 2008.
Overall, the
The unemployment rate of 9.8% was up from 9.7% in August and the highest since June 1983.
The Labor Department listed the sagging construction market – which cut 64,000 jobs in September, including 39,000 in non-residential - as one of the leading reasons for the overall decline.
The construction sector is a crucial end-use market for chemicals and plastics.
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By: Ben DuBose
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