I don’t mean to suggest that there aren’t some workers who have been stranded by structural changes in the economy. More can and should be done to help dislocated workers acquire new skills to transition from industries and occupations with fewer opportunities.
But making this transition will be much easier in a healthy economy, which is one reason why I am encouraged by the evidence that elevated unemployment is indeed largely cyclical. I will now describe what the Federal Reserve is doing to try to raise demand and create jobs.