First, the good news: Over the past two months, unemployment in DC has fallen by a percentage point from 11.6 percent in March to 10.4 percent in May.
However, District’s unemployment rate remains worse than Maryland (7.2 percent) and Virginia (7.1 percent) and is greater than the national unemployment rate of 9.7 percent. Certain areas of the District have been hit particularly hard by the economic downturn: more than one in four individuals seeking work in Ward 8 was unemployed in December 2009.
A new paper from DCFPI examines the characteristics of unemployed DC residents and finds that in the increase in DC’s unemployment rate from 2008 to 2009 fell most heavily on District residents least able to afford it. For example:
- Wards 5, 7, and 8 had higher monthly average unemployment than the city as a whole in 2009. In Ward 8, where unemployment is highest, the rate was 27 percent in 2009. These three wards also had the highest percentage point increases in unemployment from 2008 to 2009.
- Nearly half of the DC residents who were unemployed in 2009 had previously worked in low-wage jobs. About one-fifth of unemployed DC residents previously worked in sales or food preparation and service occupations, while another one quarter of unemployed residents formerly worked as janitors and maintenance workers, movers, security guards, or construction workers. Those with lower levels of formal education also were more likely to be unemployed.
- The increase in unemployment affected certain groups of workers more than others, including those who were aged 18-24, were black, and had never been married. While black workers make up 44 percent of the labor force, 71 percent of unemployed residents in 2009 were black.
The paper recommends that the District address its unemployment crisis by embracing two broad strategies: ensuring that unemployed residents have adequate income supports to avoid falling further into poverty and providing access to training they may need to reenter employment successfully.
