Unemployment on the Rise

Our local newspaper printed a story last week that Unemployment in our area has declined. They reported that Unemployment was down from 10% to 8.5%. I don't know how they are calculating their figures, because I personally know of at least 30 people who were just layed off from their jobs. Many had been with their respective companies for almost 30 years and were near retirement. Many of these people ae over the age of 45 and they will now be thrust back into a job hunt where they will compete against younger, better schooled job seekers. I have a friend who has been on her job search for well over a year now, she has only been able to find part time or contract work. I know of another person who was recently layed off from a job he had worked at for 25 years. He had just recently returned to his job duties after recovering from a lengthy illness. His illness was debilitating and is still ongoing. He applied for disability from Social Security and was turned down. He returned to work and he was lucky that he had an understanding employer who put him doing desk duties for the same rate of pay he had been receiving. Unfortunately that Company just closed down all offices nationwide. With his illness his hopes of finding another job are dismal. Unemployment is on the rise, Obama needs to focus on bringing this nation out of this recession instead of pushing a healthcare bill that will drive this nation deeper into this recession.