It\u2019s hard to say why the unemployment rate for young men is rising, but\u00a0it\u2019s a disturbing trend.<\/p>\n
Despite all\u00a0the drama<\/a>\u00a0about the\u00a0weakening jobs numbers<\/a>, the US labor market is actually doing OK. There is one major exception, however: if you happen to be a young man.<\/p>\n While the overall unemployment rate was still a respectable 4.2% in July, for young men aged 20 to 24, it was 8.3%, which is near recession levels \u2014 and for recent college graduates, the annual rate is 5.3%. Both of these numbers are about double the comparable figures for young women. During the pandemic, the economy was so bad for working women that it inspired the term \u201cshe-cession<\/a>.\u201d Could the US now be headed for a \u201che-cession\u201d?<\/p>\n Men have dominated the labor market for most of the modern era, and still earn more than women, but the jobs market has not been kind to men for the last few decades. Many men, even in the prime of their lives, aren\u2019t working. And going to college is\u00a0no longer<\/a>\u00a0an automatic way to improve your job prospects.<\/p>\n