‘Economy Track’ Tells Story Behind the Numbers

by James Parks, Nov 4, 2009

The nonprofit Economic Policy Institute (EPI) has launched an interactive tool for anyone interested in looking beneath current economic data to find out what’s really happening with jobs and the economy. The new online feature, “Economy Track,” offers easy-to-understand charts built on government statistics and enhanced with exclusive EPI data.   

For example, Economy Track illustrates how unemployment is higher for African Americans and Hispanics than for whites, higher for men than for women, and much higher for blue-collar workers than for those with white-collar jobs.

Users can focus on unemployment and underemployment trends by state, race/ethnic group, gender, occupation and education level.

Unlike many other sites, Economy Track includes data on underemployment, which represents workers who are stuck in part-time or low-paying jobs who want full-time work. The site provides valuable insights by allowing users to compare the current economic downturn with past recessions. There is a detailed chart on the job market and labor turnover.

Here’s an important point: You can download the raw data and see for yourself the numbers on which the charts are based.

Check out this great tool here.

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