Unemployment, Post-Irene Wreckage Greet Many Labor Day Weekenders

It’s a coincidence of the calendar that occurred just before Labor Day weekend.

Because while it may not have been the storm of the century, it highlighted how much people rely on those whose jobs keep infrastructure smoothly running—from keeping electricity flowing to clearing roads of dangerous debris. And it whirled through the state just before the release of new unemployment figures.

Labor Day was established more than 100 years ago to honor the social and economic achievements of American workers, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Peter J. McGuire, general secretary of the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners, and a cofounder of the American Federation of Labor, suggested the day to honor those “who from rude nature have delved and carved all the grandeur we behold.”

The first Labor Day was celebrated on Sept. 5, 1882 in New York City at the behest of the Central Labor Union. In 1884 the first Monday in September was designated as the holiday. At the time the CLU encouraged other organizations to follow the example and celebrate a “workingmen’s holiday." In 1894 Congress designated it a legal holiday.

Over time it came to symbolize summer’s last bash. Yet this year, with so many working to dry flooded basements, remove tree limbs, or find hotels with hot showers, the holiday has lost its glow.

One Ridgefield resident, who asked not to be named, will spend the weekend holed up in a hotel room in Westchester. All area hotels were booked.

“I couldn’t take it anymore,” she said of the four days without power.

For others without power, the water beckons.

“We’re going to be out sailing,” said Julie Min Chayet of Weston.

Still, many State parks remain closed until further notice such as , Putnam Memorial State Park and Black Rock State Park, which is closed for swimming.

Town parks are another matter. Many opened earlier during the week.

In Norwalk, the storm knocked out the seawall and damaged the fishing pier at . Town official reopened the beach last Wednesday.

In Wilton, the was packed most afternoons and Barnes & Nobles in Westport became more than a bookstore. Last Tuesday night it seemed every nook and cranny was filled with people charging phones or taking advantage of WiFi.

However, with unemployment across the state at 9.1 percent the holiday weekend won’t be about where to vacation. Rather it serves as a reminder of the state’s need for jobs.

“Connecticut’s job creation engine has stalled,” said Jamey Bell, executive director for Connecticut Voices for Children. “We urgently need a new, cost-effective economic strategy that is more accountable for creating new jobs and makes the most use of limited resources.”

Connecticut Voices released a Labor Day weekend report that said the recession had unequal impact across demographic groups and geography. Young, Hispanic and African American workers are disproportionately out of work. Moreover, long-term unemployment, those without work for at least six months, remains high.

It will take at least six years to recover the 119,000 jobs lost during the recession, according to the report.

The report showed that while unemployment rates of African Americans has decreased slightly, the share of African American workers in the labor force actually declined from 73 percent in 2006 to 67.6 percent in 2010, suggesting that many of these workers are discouraged and no longer looking for work.

It also showed that long-term unemployment at 49.6 percent is high in the state and worse for older workers. The state has the fifth highest long-term unemployment rate in the country.

In addition, the recession has hurt urban regions and rural towns more than suburbs. For example, New Haven has an unemployment rate of 13.8 percent and Bridgeport has a 14.3 percent unemployment rate.

“It is troubling that so much of our future workforce – especially young workers and the growing Hispanic population—is unemployed now,” said Orlando Rodriguez, Senior Policy Fellow at Connecticut Voices and co-author of the report. “This trend does not bode well for our future.”