如今失业的美国人面临一个严峻的新问题：要很快找到下一份工作变得越来越难。
Americans who lose their jobs these days are facing a harsh new problem: It's getting harder to find another one quickly.
美国劳工统计局周五发布的就业报告显示，10月经季节调整后，失业工人的平均失业时长超过27周。这相当于求职时间接近七个月，是2016年以来除疫情期间之外的最长纪录；2016年，美国劳动力市场在2008年金融危机后终于重回正轨。
The average jobless worker's bout of unemployment surpassed 27 weeks in October on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to Friday's jobs report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That amounts to a job search of nearly seven months, the longest outside of the pandemic period since 2016, when the U.S. labor market was finally getting back on track after the 2008 financial crisis.
劳工统计局报告称，约有200万美国人至少27周没有工作。这一类人被称为“长期失业者”，10月占全部失业工人的27.6%，为2021年末以来的最高比例。
About 2 million Americans have been without work for at least 27 weeks, the BLS reported. People in this category are referred to as the "long-term unemployed" and accounted for 27.6% of all jobless workers in October, the highest share since late 2021.
“这个数据序列逐月波动可能很大，”招聘平台Indeed高级经济学家科里·斯塔尔说，“但如果拉长时间看，这一趋势不会有错。”对原本平稳的劳动力市场来说，这是一个令人不安的迹象。被困在场外的工人，成了如今这个“低招聘、低裁员”就业市场的牺牲品——企业既不愿裁员，也不愿增员。
"This is a series that can be noisy from month to month," said Cory Stahle, senior economist at Indeed, a hiring platform. "But if you look over a longer time horizon, there is no mistake in the trend." It's a troubling an otherwise steady labor market. Workers stuck on the sidelines are a casualty of what's become a "low-hire, low-fire" job market, in which companies are hesitant to lay workers off, but aren't adding them either.
研究显示，经历长期失业的美国人面临储蓄耗尽、长期收入潜力下降以及心理健康状况恶化的问题。
Research shows that Americans who experience long-term unemployment face depleted savings, lower earnings potential over time and declining mental health.
此外，里士满联邦储备银行的研究人员今年早些时候写道，长期失业的工人有陷入自我延续的恶性循环的风险。
What's more, workers who are unemployed for extended periods risk falling into a self-perpetuating cycle, researchers at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond wrote earlier this year.
研究人员警告称：“失业时间本身可能会降低找到工作的概率，或许是因为技能贬值、人脉变薄，或者雇主将过长的失业时间解读为负面信号。”
"Time spent unemployed may itself reduce the probability of finding a job, perhaps because skills depreciate, networks thin or employers interpret long unemployment durations as a negative signal," the researchers warned.
在一年内领满26周后，工人就无法再申领大部分（如果不是全部的话）政府失业救济金。鉴于此，长期失业者比例不断上升，可以部分解释为何首次申请和持续申请失业救济的人数一直保持在低位。
Workers stop being able to claim most, if not all, government unemployment benefits after 26 weeks in a year. Given that, a rising share of long-term unemployed people can explain in part why initial and continuing jobless claims have remained low.
斯塔尔说：“现在，普通失业者找到工作所需的时间比他们领取救济金的持续时间更长。这是其中非常关键的一点。”尽管失业工人似乎日子不好过，但本周的就业数据显示，劳动力市场其他领域仍表现强劲。
"Now, the average unemployed person takes longer to find a job than their benefits would last," Stahle said. "That is a really key point of this." While jobless workers appear to be having a tough time, this week's employment data shows strength in other areas of the labor market.
周五公布的数据显示，10月非农就业人数远超经济学家预期，新增16.5万个就业岗位。失业率小幅降至4.1%，略低于经济学家的预测。
Nonfarm payrolls blew past economists' forecasts for October and added 165,000 jobs, according to Friday's release. The unemployment rate ticked down to 4.1%, slightly lower than economists predicted.
美国劳工统计局周二发布的另一份报告显示，9月职位空缺数远高于经济学家预期。辞职人数——这是衡量工人对找到新工作信心的晴雨表——飙升至2025年3月以来的最高水平。
Job openings came in much higher than economists expected in September, according to a separate report from the BLS released on Tuesday. The number of workers quitting jobs — a barometer of their confidence to obtain new employment — spiked to levels not seen since March 2025.
劳工统计局还表示，裁员和解雇人数降至一年多以来的最低水平。然而，近期一连串备受关注的裁员行动可能会给工人眼中市场正在升温的看法泼上一盆冷水。
The BLS also said layoffs and discharges dropped to their lowest volume in more than a year. However, a recent string of high-profile workforce cuts could throw cold water on views among workers that the market is heating up.
美国消费者新闻与商业频道本周报道，迪士尼计划裁减数千个岗位，这是这家媒体巨头今年数轮裁员潮中的最新一轮。美国运通上月表示，将裁员5%，以便围绕人工智能重新调整业务方向。
CNBC reported this week that Disney is planning to axe thousands of jobs, the latest of several waves of layoffs at the media giant this year. American Express said last month that it was slashing head count by 5% as it reorients around artificial intelligence.
Life360首席经济学家伊丽莎白·伦特说：“很难把你或你周围人身上发生的事与整体形势分开来看。当你的领英上满是裁员消息，你的社交圈里又有几个人已经找工作好几个月了，那些关于劳动力市场的乐观说法就会显得刺耳。”
"It's difficult to separate what's happening to you or the people around you from the big picture," said Elizabeth Renter, lead economist at Life360. "When your LinkedIn is filled with layoffs and your social circle features a few folks who have been job seeking for several months, positive narratives about the labor market can seem jarring."