Fed's Lockhart: Hard to Connect U.S. Growth, Employment

The transcript discusses the current state of the labor market, highlighting the discrepancy between strong job numbers and weak GDP growth. It questions the quality of jobs, noting a shift towards part-time and lower-skilled positions. The conversation explores the concept of full employment and economic slack, and the challenge of reconciling robust employment data with weak economic growth. A metaphor of a 'Wile E. Coyote labor market' is used to illustrate potential instability, and the discussion concludes with a comparison of the reliability of employment versus GDP data.

What does the term 'Coyote labor market' refer to in the context of employment?

Why might GDP numbers be considered more complex than employment numbers?