Why Long-Term Unemployment Is Surging With a 4.3 Percent Jobless Rate

The unemployment rate sits at 4.3 percent, historically low. But beneath that headline number, long-term unemployment—people out of work for 27 weeks or more—has jumped nearly 20 percent since last year. Lucas and Luna dig into the May jobs data, the JOLTS surge to 7.6 million openings, and the structural mismatch keeping workers on the sidelines. They explore why the Fed's rate-cutting path gets murkier when the labor market looks strong on the surface but fragile underneath. A concrete look at a hidden stress point in the economy, anchored to the latest numbers from June 2026. #LongTermUnemployment #LaborMarket #FedPolicy #JOLTS #JobsReport #MayJobs2026 #UnemploymentRate #StructuralMismatch #EconomicIndicators #HiringSlowdown #FedRateCuts #LucasAndLuna #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #EconomicsShow #MacroMemo #JoblessClaims #WageGrowth Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo