In January 2008, total US employment was 138.0 million.  By January 2010, the Great Recession caused the loss of 8.7 million jobs.  As of November 2011, only 2.4 million jobs were created since the beginning of this decade (1 Jan 10). Government (mainly local and municipal governments) shed approximately ½ million jobs as shown. Whereas, the private sector generated 2,548,000 jobs in service-providing and 336,000 jobs in goods-producing industries respectively.   While this is good news, America continues to have a 58% jobs shortfall as measured by the traditional economic benchmark of 250,000 jobs per month to achieve economic recovery.

From a Jobenomics perspective the three most important employment sectors include private sector service-providing industries, private sector goods-producing industries, and the government sector (federal, state and local).  Based on Bureau of Labor Statistics data, private sector service-providing industries, is the only sector that contributes to meaningful jobs creation with 106.7% increase relative to the total number of jobs produced.  Looking at the total private sector (service-providing and goods-producing), 99% of new jobs were generated by small business whereas only 1% by large business as shown.

From a Jobenomics perspective, America’s near term emphasis should be on small businesses in the service-providing industries with emphasis on professional, business, information, financial, trade, transportation, utilities, leisure and hospitality services which have sustained strong to moderate growth over the last three decades as well as post recession.  If the US government and American people had placed greater emphasis on these small businesses, as opposed to large financial institutions and big businesses, the number of new American jobs may have doubled or tripled since the end of the Great Recession.