On this national holiday dedicated to the brains and brawn of the American worker, let’s take the pulse of our 170-million-strong U.S. labor force. Consider:

● More and more Americans are actively participating in the labor market. Our nation’s current unemployment rate of 4.3 percent has dropped dramatically in recent years, and the U.S. economy added 114,000 new jobs and workers in July alone, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

● More and more of us are producing goods and services more efficiently. The Gross Domestic Product of the nation expanded by an impressive 3% in the second quarter of this year. The U.S. Economic Policy Institute reports that the average hourly employee’s productivity has increased 80 percent over the past four decades.

● More and more of our resilient workforce are gaining deserved rewards for such enhanced productivity. Over the past 12 months, for example, the average hourly wage of the American worker increased from $33.84 in July 2023 to $35.07 in July 2024, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Collectively, then, the vital signs of the labor force clearly remain strong, robust and ripe for additional improvement.

But without a doubt, several gnawing challenges toward optimal growth across the board remain. Not everyone everywhere shares in the bounties that the above data so encouragingly illustrate. The Mahoning Valley, for example, is a perfect case in point of the uneven improvements in the U.S. economy and its workforce.

July 2024 unemployment in the three-county Mahoning Valley hovered at 6%, nearly twice the national rate, while joblessness in urban centers and among women and minorities is higher yet. For example, unemployment in Youngstown this summer peaked at 8%.

Towering inflation, economic disparities, long-term unemployment and other challenges remain sores on a U.S. economy still struggling to recover completely from the beatdown of the COVID-19 pandemic at its height three years ago. Many of us work longer and harder than ever before; indeed the average American now spends 47 hours per week on the job, according to the BLS.

Organized labor — for whom Labor Day was created in 1894 after a national train strike resulted in the deaths of 30 workers at the hands of U.S. marshals –has seen better days as well. Its ranks have been decimated over the past four decades.

In 1983, 20.1 percent of the American workforce was unionized; in 2024, that rate stands at 10% and falling. Ohio lost nearly 340,000 manufacturing jobs — which tend to be heavily unionized — between 2000 and 2022. It’s not surprising then that the share of union workers in the Buckeye State fell from 18% to 12% during that same time frame, according to BLS.

Yet despite those and other ongoing rough spots, American and Valley laborers nonetheless can celebrate a variety of success stories on this day set aside to rightly honor their talent, commitment and hard work.

Unquestionably, this region’s economy has seen some bright spots in recent years, what with major manufacturers opening new facilities or expanding, small retailers setting up shop and service industries showing marked growth. Ultium Cells LLC, for example, has more workers at its Lordstown plant than the GM Lordstown Assembly plant had when it closed shop in that village five years ago. That sent shockwaves through the Valley and left many wondering if our region could ever fully recover.

What’s more, overall growth in the labor force at last has been renewed in the Valley. Over the past year, the Labor Department reports increases in the number of manufacturing, health care, education and leisure/hospitality jobs in the Youngstown-Warren-Boardman metropolitan area.

The Valley, too, is gaining international recognition as a hot spot in two key growth industries of the 21st century: electric vehicles and additive manufacturing. Our region’s workforce has become increasingly more diversified than the days when the fortunes of Greater Youngstown residents rested far too heavily on the vagaries of the once-mighty steel industry.

To be sure, American workers can and should savor their long and proud history on this 130th anniversary of Labor Day. Their contributions continue to raise the standard of living and quality of life for many.

And even though challenges and struggles linger, one must never lose sight of the value of America’s enduring work ethic that has characterized our region for centuries and has forged our nation into the global powerhouse it remains today.

editorial@tribtoday.com