The Shutdown’s Consequences for the BLS Are Dire

With the US government shutdown approaching its third week, the costs and consequences are steadily accumulating: for citizens who rely on federal services, for the employees who serve them, and for the taxpayers who foot the bill. And for those of us who live and breathe economic data, a critical window is closing.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Situation report, aka the Jobs Report, relies on data that is collected in the middle of the month. If the shutdown continues past this week, October’s report will be disrupted or possibly missed altogether.