The national unemployment rate, now at 7.6 percent, has hit a 16-year high according to a U.S. Labor Department Report released Friday.
Since January 2008 the nation has seen more than 3.6 million jobs vanish.
In December the nation’s employers cut another 598,000 workers from their payrolls in the worst month of job losses in more than 34 years.
Economists predict that women are now poised to surpass men in the workforce, as 82 percent of job losses so far have affected male-dominated industries like manufacturing and construction.
Reacting to the new figures, Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley said, “These numbers are a wake-up call. It is time opponents of the recovery package stop hitting the snooze button and start working with President Obama to help American families.”
Meanwhile, a separate report shows that most low-income people who lose their jobs also are without health care insurance.
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