The U.S. unemployment finally rate rose by more than economists had expected in October to 10.2, its highest level in more than 26 years.
The unemployment rate stood at 9.8 percent in September.
Non-farm payrolls fell by 190,000 in October, with the largest job losses coming in the construction, manufacturing and retail trade sectors, according to the latest estimates by the U.S. Department of Labor.
Among the major worker groups, the unemployment rates for adult men (10.7 percent) and whites (9.5 percent) rose in October. The jobless rates for adult women (8.1 percent), teenagers (27.6 percent), Blacks (15.7 percent), and Hispanics (13.1 percent) were little changed over the month. The unemployment rate for Asians was 7.5 percent, not seasonally adjusted.
An alternative gauge of unemployment, which includes discouraged workers and those forced to work part-time, rose to 17.5 percent, the highest on record dating to 1995.
Locally, only four of 20 Milwaukee-area business activity indicators pointed upward in September vs. year-ago levels, down from the five improvements posted in August, according to the latest monthly report by the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce (MMAC).
"The employment situation in the metro area may have deteriorated a bit in September," said Bret Mayborne, economic research director for the MMAC. "September's year-over-year job decline matched the steepest of the recession and nine of 10 major industry sectors posted employment declines."
Metro Milwaukee's seasonally unadjusted unemployment rate reached 8.5 percent in September. Wisconsin's jobless rate at 7.7 percent measured lower than both the local and national rates.
Employment levels in the Milwaukee area fell for the 17th consecutive month on a year-over-year basis.

Despite today's bleak employment news, the stock market did not flinch today, as the Dow Jones Industrial Averaged hovered over the 10,000 mark.
Local stocks in the BizTimes Stock Index were led this morning by Kohl's Corp. (up 57 cents to $56.54), MGIC Investment Corp. (up 51 cents to $4.79) and Twin Disc Inc. (up 45 cents to $43.78). The largest local decliners this morning were Joy Global Inc. (down $1.08 to $54.05) and Bucyrus International Inc. (down 76 cents to $50.15).

A legislative showdown is shaping up for Saturday night in the House of Representatives, where Democrats say they plan to forge ahead with a vote on a massive health care reform bill.
The bill received significant boosts Thursday, when the AARP and the American Medical Association (AMA) announced their support for the plan, a 1,990-page measure that aims to expand health insurance to 36 million Americans.
No Republicans are expected to support the Democratic bill, which includes a public option designed to provide competition for private insurers.
Republicans finally put forth their own plan this week. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) said the GOP proposal would reduce the rolls of the uninsured in America by about 3 million in 2019, but would leave 52 million people without medical coverage.
Democrats need 218 votes to pass their plan, which is supported by President Barack Obama.
"We are closer to passing this reform than ever before," Obama told reporters Thursday. "Now that the doctors and medical professionals of America are standing with us, now that the organizations charged with looking out for the interests of seniors are standing with us, we are even closer."
U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Janesville) this week called the Democratic plan a "costly behemoth" that would launch a government takeover of health care.
"The 1,990-page Democratic health care bill, expected to reach the House floor this week, suffers all the predictable failings that result from its true intent: to initiate a central government takeover of the health sector - one-sixth of the U.S. economy and one of the most valued and personal services Americans have," Ryan said.
However, AARP chief executive Barry Rand said the House's Democratic health bill meets the group's goals of making coverage affordable for its younger members and protecting Medicare for seniors.
"We've read the Affordable Health Care for America Act, and we can say with confidence that it meets those goals with improved benefits for people in Medicare and needed health-insurance market reforms to help ensure every American can purchase affordable health coverage," Rand said.
The AMA's president, James Rohack, said the bill would expand health insurance coverage and let patients and doctors make medical-care choices.

Triad Construction Inc. has moved to a larger facility in West Allis at 2077 S. 116th St.
The construction firm said the expanded new location will support its steadily growing roster of employees and work.
The company was previously located in West Allis at 1828 S. 76th St.
"We are all very excited about the move, and I know it will enhance our ability to provide the quality craftsmanship and service our clients have come to expect from us," said Mike Long, executive vice president of Triad Construction.
Triad Construction was named to the Council of Small Business Executives list of Future 50 companies for the second time this year.

Emdat Inc., a Fitchburg-based provider of online-based medical transcription, has appointed Whitefish Bay resident Randy Olver as its new chief executive officer, effective immediately.
Emdat's founding partners, who remain actively involved in the business, selected Olver to serve as CEO of the 10-year-old company. Steve Palmisano, one of the founders who had been CEO, will continue to serve as president.
"Randy's diverse business experience is exactly what we've been seeking to guide Emdat to the next level so that we can continue providing world-class transcription products and services to our clients," Palmisano said. "We've tripled in size in the past five years and, looking forward, our business needs have grown dramatically."
Emdat, which experienced double-digit growth during the difficult business environment of the past year, remains committed to its core business model of providing medical transcription service organizations (MTSOs) and health care providers a fully managed software suite to collect, store and move data with no up-front software costs or maintenance fees.
"It's a critical time for medical software and I am very confident in the ability of Emdat's people and technology to evolve with industry changes and to set the pace for improvements," said Olver, who worked at U.S. Bank for 17 years. "There's a heightened awareness within the medical community regarding ways that transcription software complements, rather than competes with, electronic medical records."

Gonzalez Saggio & Harlan LLP, a Milwaukee-based law firm, continues to expand its nationwide footprint with the opening of an office in Nashville, Tenn.
Nashville attorneys Natasha Blackshear and Dennis Nunez have joined Gonzalez Saggio & Harlan as the firm opens its 13th office.
"I am pleased to join forces with such a respected minority-owned law firm," Blackshear said. "Gonzalez Saggio & Harlan brings the considerable resources of a nationwide law firm to bear on public and corporate finance matters in Nashville, Memphis and across the state of Tennessee."
"We are delighted to welcome these talented and experienced attorneys into Gonzalez Saggio & Harlan as we continue to expand our reach as a truly nationwide law firm," said Jerry Gonzalez, managing partner of the firm.

Menomonee Falls-based Magnetek Inc. today reported a fiscal first quarter net loss of  $1.8 million, or 6 cents per share, compared with net income of $881,000, or 3 cents per share, in the same period a year ago.
Magnetek recorded revenue of $17.8 million, a 32-percent decrease from a year earlier and an 11-percent sequential decline from the fourth quarter of fiscal 2009.
The decline in sales from the prior year quarter reflects the continued slowdown in industrial activity in the United States and the resulting impact on capital spending levels, the company said.
Peter McCormick, Magnetek's president and chief executive officer, said, "As expected, the difficult market conditions we experienced in the second half of fiscal 2009 continued throughout the first quarter of fiscal 2010. While industrial production in the U.S. increased slightly during the September quarter, capacity utilization rates remained well below historical averages and credit markets remained tight, resulting in sluggish capital spending levels which impacted our sales volume in the first quarter." Magnetek expects sales for the second quarter of fiscal 2010 to reflect a sequential double-digit percentage increase from the current year first quarter sales. Gross margins in the second quarter of fiscal 2010 are expected to be near the company's 30-percent target, due to cost savings from actions taken to reduce the company's cost structure.
"While we have not yet seen a robust recovery in our business to date, certain indicators seemingly support the assertion that the June quarter may have been the bottom in terms of order rates, and that the September quarter was the cyclical bottom in terms of revenue. As a result, we believe our sales for the second quarter will increase sequentially from the first quarter, and our current outlook projects improving quarterly trends for the remainder of the fiscal year," McCormick said.

Milwaukee-based Rexnord LLC today reported fiscal second quarter net income of $4.5 million, down from $14.3 million in the same period a year ago.
The manufacturer's quarterly net sales fell to $369.7 million from $510.6 million a year earlier.
Todd Adams, Rexnord's president and chief executive officer, said, "We are pleased with our operating performance in the second quarter. Our adjusted EBITDA grew by $12.7 million dollars sequentially from our first quarter on similar sales resulting in an adjusted EBITDA margin of 18.6 percent, a 340 basis improvement from the first quarter. In comparison to last year, excluding the impact of pensions, our second quarter Adjusted EBITDA margins were 20.2 percent, an 80 basis point improvement over the prior year, and our free cash flow generation continues to be very strong as we have generated $71 million dollars of free cash flow in the first half of fiscal 2010 compared to $23 million dollars in the first half of last year. While the overall economy remains difficult, the pieces of our business that we expected to stabilize for the most part have done so, and we are well-positioned to deliver solid results in the second half of fiscal 2010 and beyond."

The Dane County Board voted 20-16 with one absence early this morning to create a regional transit authority (RTA), a new governmental body with the power to raise a sales tax to fund bus and rail transportation options. Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk said she plans to sign the resolution, which will make the new body official. In creating an RTA, the Dane County Board handed over the responsibility to the RTA for answering questions about commuter rail vs. enhanced bus service or when to hold a referendum on a sales tax. Falk, Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz and the mayors of Fitchburg and Middleton signed a letter committing their appointees to hold an RTA-wide referendum before imposing up to a half-cent sales tax. Read more in BizTimes Milwaukee's daily roundup of headlines from newspapers across the state at www.biztimes.com/#news.

Trek Bicycle recently held an “It’s about the Bike” auction in New York City. Featuring seven custom painted, one-of-a-kind Trek bicycles, the auction raised an unprecedented $1.25 million to benefit the Lance Armstrong Foundation’s cancer research, awareness and advocacy programs. Read more in the new edition of the BizTimes Nonprofit Weekly bulletin. To subscribe to receive the free weekly bulletin, click here.

Busy readers of the BizTimes Daily can get a jumpstart on the weekend ahead by reading the OnMilwaukee.com Weekend Preview. OnMilwaukee.com is a media partner of BizTimes Milwaukee.

The Impartial Justice bill approved by the state Assembly on Thursday is a triumph for democracy in Wisconsin, according to Mike McCabe, author of today's Milwaukee Biz Blog.