Marketplace The job market won't start fresh in 2026
9 snips
Dec 24, 2025 Alice Wilder, a Marketplace reporter focused on cost-of-living and food insecurity, dives into the complexities of today’s job market. She shares insights on mixed employment data and how rising unemployment disparities affect vulnerable groups. In an engaging segment, Wilder introduces TikTok creator Kiki Ruff, who promotes budget cooking with her ‘recession recipes.’ They discuss the challenges of grocery budgeting and how Ruff's creative cooking methods emerged from personal hardship. Their uplifting conversation explores the delicate balance between financial uncertainty and culinary creativity.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Mixed Signals From Jobs Data
- Initial jobless claims fell to pre-pandemic lows, but that metric misses many workers who don't apply for benefits.
- The unemployment rate rose to 4.6% and masks widening disparities, notably an 8.3% rate for Black workers.
Who Jobless Claims Leave Out
- Initial claims only capture those who apply and undercount workers least likely to file, like part-time and marginalized workers.
- Rising unemployment, even from low levels, has concentrated effects that harm consumption and housing demand.
Racial Gaps In Unemployment
- The overall unemployment rate conceals sharp racial gaps: whites at 3.9% versus Black workers at 8.3%.
- If the Black unemployment rate were the national rate, we'd consider the economy to be in deep recession.