Joseph Tracy (left) and Jason Bram (right), both senior leaders of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, took questions from the audience at Dominican College on January 15, 2016.
Local business leaders gathered at Dominican College on January 15, 2016, to hear what senior leaders from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York had to say.
Joseph Tracy is the Executive Vice President and Senior Advisor to the President of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. He said that many Americans were surprised that it took so long to reverse the job losses of the recession. “The other bit of folklore is that the stronger the downturn, the faster the recovery – you had these v-shaped recessions and recoveries. We just didn’t experience that,” he said.
Tracy explained that the recovery took longer because of a changing economy, labor force, and demographics.
Jason Bram, Research Officer, Regional Analysis Function, Federal Reserve Bank of New York, gave a more regional perspective on the economy. He cautioned that the unemployment rates don’t tell the full story. While U.S. unemployment is generally at the same levels as before the recession, labor participation is lower. “What that means is that the unemployment rate is lower not completely because there are more and more people working,” said Bram, “but to some extent because there are fewer people looking for work or people who are what we call ‘underemployed.’”
Bram said that the economy of New York State has outperformed the nation, and New York City has been the leader in the State.
The presentation was co-sponsored by the Palisades Institute and the Rockland Business Association.