The unemployment rate for Black women fell from 7 percent to 5 percent in November, a large drop after months of lackluster growth, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics Friday.
It appears that the reason for the drop is mixed: Unemployment rates can fall because people leave the labor force, a “bad” reason because it means the rate is lower as a result of the overall labor force being smaller. To be counted as out of the labor force, people have to be unemployed and not looking for work at all. About 91,000 Black women left the labor force last month, the biggest month-to-month drop this year.
When small sample sizes are smaller, it’s more difficult to draw conclusions about what is happening each month.
Excellent news!