It's no secret that Michigan is hurting. We've led the country in unemployment for quite some time, the collapse of the automotive industry has impacted upwards of 60% of all Michiganders, and our state government is in complete disarray.
It's no wonder we rank 48th out of 50 in the "Happiest States in the USA".
But this week, as reported in the Detroit News, we learn that in the city of Detroit, a metropolitan city with just over a million residents, the real unemployment level (which includes people working part-time who want full-time work, "discouraged" workers, who have stopped looking for work and people who have gone back to school rather than search for a job) is pushing 50%. Nearly half the people in Detroit are without a full-time job.
On the face of it, Michigan appears to be staggering back onto its feet. The "official" unemployment rate was at 14.7%, down from a high of 15.3% in September. The official rate in Detroit pegs in at 27%.
But those numbers don't tell the full story.
Using a broader definition of unemployment, as much as 45 percent of the labor force has been affected by the downturn.
And that doesn't include those who gave up the job search more than a year ago, a number that could exceed 100,000 potential workers alone...
The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated that for the year that ended in September, Michigan's official unemployment rate was 12.6 percent. Using the broadest definition of unemployment, the state unemployment rate was 20.9 percent, or 66 percent higher than the official rate. Since Detroit's official rate for October was 27 percent, that broader rate pushes the city's rate to as high as 44.8 percent.
This was Chris Matthews' "Big Number" on Hardball last night.
Nearly half a million people in a major U.S. city looking for full-time employment. Homeless shelters are being strained to the limits and 20-40% of homeless people in Detroit are homeless for the first time. The Detroit Warming Center opened its doors for the season this week. It can accomodate 250 people who receive "two hot meals, counseling, showers and sleeping accommodations. Center staff also can provide housing assistance, health screenings and referrals for other services." A truly great resource and inadequate for the demand.
Thinking about some end-of-the-year donations? Please consider those listed below. If ever there was a time for helping out others, it is now.
I'm just sayin'...
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
If you wish to help out some of the more outstanding groups in the Detroit area that are helping impoverished people, I would direct your attention to these five specifically:
Capuchin Soup Kitchen whose donation page is HERE
and
The Gleaners Community Food Bank whose donation page is HERE
and
Super All Day Detroit (S.A.Y.), a non-profit charity to help improve the lives of Detroit's homeless started by the Detroit Free Press's very own Mitch Albom, donation page HERE
and
Focus: HOPE whose donation page is HERE
and
The Heat and Warmth Fund (THAW) whose donation page is HERE
Thank you.