Black Unemployment Was 7.8% In December

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday released its last jobless report before President Barack Obama completes his eight years in office on Jan. 20; it showed that the unemployment rate for African Americans improved slightly on a seasonally adjusted basis. The jobless rate for blacks in December was 7.8 percent, down from 8.0 percent in November. The unemployment rate for black men 20 years old and older was 7.6 percent in December, compared to 7.7 percent in November. The Jobless rate for African-American women 20 years old and older was 6.8 percent in December, compared to 7.1 percent in November. The overall jobless rate for African Americans is much higher than that of whites, Asians and Hispanics, BLS reported. December's unemployment rate for whites was 4.3 percent; for Asians, it was 2.3 percent and for Hispanics, it was 5.9 percent.