Americans Still Upbeat About Job Market, Says Gallup

Americans Still Upbeat About Job Market, Says Gallup
A 'now hiring' sign is displayed on the front entrance to a Staples store in New York City, June 2, 2017. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
Emel Akan
7/4/2018
Updated:
7/5/2018

Americans remain quite positive about the job market, reflecting strong data on the U.S. economy in general and on employment in particular.

According to a poll conducted by Gallup in June, Americans are positive, with 65 percent saying that it is a good time to find a quality job, similar to 67 percent in May.

The May and June measures are the highest readings in Gallup’s 17-year history of tracking Americans’ views of the jobs market.

Another Gallup survey showed that fewer Americans mentioned the economy as the nation’s top problem. A growing number of citizens now identify immigration as the most important problem facing the country.

Republicans are more positive than Democrats about the employment situation, reflecting a partisan gap in views.

Eighty-five percent of Republicans say it is a good time to find a quality job, as opposed to 50 percent of Democrats, according to the poll.

“During the Barack Obama years, Democrats were more optimistic about the job market than Republicans,” stated a Gallup report.

Under Obama’s presidency, views of the job market plummeted to an all-time low of 8 percent in 2009 and again in 2011, amid the financial meltdown and high unemployment.

Optimism about the ability to find a quality job began to surge after Donald Trump took office, according to Gallup.

U.S. job openings surged to record-high levels this year, with vacancies increasingly exceeding the number of unemployed workers. And the unemployment rate fell to 3.8 percent in May, the lowest in 18 years.

While a strong jobs market benefits American workers, companies are having trouble finding suitable workers due to a growing skills gap.

The skills shortage is a broad issue that affects many U.S. industries. The Trump administration has several proposals aimed at fixing the problem, which include reforming education and workforce development programs.

Emel Akan is a senior White House correspondent for The Epoch Times, where she covers the Biden administration. Prior to this role, she covered the economic policies of the Trump administration. Previously, she worked in the financial sector as an investment banker at JPMorgan. She graduated with a master’s degree in business administration from Georgetown University.
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