Associated Press (08/24/12)

Just 56% of U.S. employees laid off from January 2009 through December 2011 had found new jobs by the beginning of 2012, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. More than half of the new jobs paid less than the employees’ previous jobs. One-third of people who found a new job accepted pay cuts of 20% or more. The DOL report points to the job market’s persistent weakness and reveals that although the economy has added almost three million jobs since the recovery started, many pay less than the ones that were lost.

DOL says the strongest job gains have been in male-dominated fields such as manufacturing and mining. Hiring has been below par in female-dominated fields such as office and administrative support. According to an Associated Press analysis, the economic recovery is the weakest the U.S. has seen since the Great Depression.