Newest face of long-term unemployed in the US? College grads

Tech advances, automation, Trump's federal cuts have disproportionately affected them

- Noam Scheiber

Mr Sean Wittmeyer would seem to be highly employable. He has more than a decade of experience in architecture and product design, impressive coding chops and two master's degrees. His skills make him an asset in two industries technology and construction, which helped power the economy's growth over the last 15 years.

But construction activity has faltered since 2023, after the Federal Reserve began raising interest rates, and many tech companies started layoffs around the same time.

That helps explain why the 37-year-old has been unemployed for 11/2 years since he lost his job in business development for a company that makes software to help with real estate projects. He has been so eager to earn income that he has applied for positions befitting an intern, only to be told he was overqualified.

"I can't even work at the little board game store down the street," he said.

When the US government released its August employment numbers on Sept 5, the overall unemployment rate was still relatively low, at just more than 4 per cent.

But underneath was a concerning statistic: The share of unemployed people who have been out of work for more than six months, which is considered "long term", rose to its highest level in over three years to nearly 26 per cent.

The trend has alarmed some job-market watchers.

"Such an increase is unprecedented outside of recessions," said an economist at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, alluding to a steady worsening of the long-term unemployment rate.

Economists at Goldman Sachs recently expressed concern that a collapse in the number of job openings "risks locking out" those who are already unemployed.

But just as surprising as the rise in long-term unemployment is the subset of workers who are increasingly driving it: the college educated.