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Cover Story

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The Jobless Rate Rises

A report released on November 6 revealed that October's unemployment rate rocketed to 10.2%. This is the percentage of workers who don't have jobs and are seeking employment. An unemployment rate of 10% means that 10 out of every 100 workers need jobs. The jobless rate of 10.2% is the worst on record since 1983.

According to the Department of Labor, 190,000 jobs were lost in the United States last month. October was the 22nd straight month that the U.S. workforce has lost jobs. A record 5.6 million people have been without jobs for six months or longer.

This troubling news comes just as experts were beginning to see signs that the nation's struggling economy is getting back on track. President Barack Obama says the unemployment rate "underscores the economic challenges that lie ahead." Obama is putting plans in motion to extend government unemployment benefits to those in need.

"People are cutting back," says 26-year-old Paul Branyon, who lost his job at a factory in Tennessee in July. "It's going to get harder before it gets easier."

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