Unemployment Still Low By Depression Standards

According to the latest report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics [1], the November 2008 unemployment rate was 6.7%.

During the Great Depression’s second year (1930), unemployment rose from 3.2 to 8.7 percent. In 1931 unemployment rose to 15.9 percent. At its peak in 1933, unemployment got to around 25 percent, more than any other country besides Germany. The chart below gives a rough representation of the aggregate unemployment rates in the US from 1890 to 1999.

So, one can hardly say we are in a depression by looking at our current unemployment rate. If unemployment continues to rise, however, we cannot rule out the possibility of a depression happening. Below are charts taken from the Bureau of Labor Statistics that go up to 2008.

[1]http://www.bls.gov/