From that well-known bastion of liberal thought, the Financial Times:



US jobs created look poor in both quality and quantity
By Christopher Swann in Washington
Published: March 9 2004 20:03

Job creation figures in the US may have struck many economists as dismal
over the past few months. But even as job quantity dominates the
political agenda, the quality of the few jobs being created has also
caused concern.

Of 290,000 private-sector jobs created since April 2003, most - 215,000
- have been temporary positions, according to last week's employment
figures. Private-sector employment would have fallen last month without
the creation of 32,000 temporary jobs in the professional and business
services sector.

About 4.3m Americans are also forced to accept part-time positions
because they have failed to find full-time work - 1m higher than the
January 2000 number.

The recent data show that US companies remain reluctant to commit
themselves to hiring new permanent staff. Economists note wryly that US
companies are happy to flirt but remain unwilling to walk to the altar.

"It is slightly depressing to think that even the poor job-creation
figures we have had have been flattered by temporary positions," says
Drew Matus, US economist at Lehman Brothers. "A lot of what we have been
getting is lower-quality jobs."

The prevalence of such stop-gap job hiring casts doubt on President
George W. Bush's ability to benefit from an economic feel-good factor
ahead of November's presidential election. It also helps explain why
wage growth is only just managing to keep pace with inflation, at about
2 per cent.
-------------------------



Ah, yes...Bush...the job creator.


Out you go, Bush...and don't slam the door when you leave for good next
January.