Americans' Job-Worry Gauge Jumps to Highest Since April 2020
US consumers are getting nervous about the job market. The perceived probability that unemployment will be higher a year from now climbed by 1.5 percentage points in October, landing at 45.3% — the highest since April 2020 and the third-highest reading on record, according to Kobeissi Letter.
- Original source: X account @KobeissiLetter.
- The source published it on Nov 11, 2026 at 7:30 PM.
- No second outlet has reported it yet. Treat it as a single-source claim.
- It comes from X posts, not a news outlet.
The October reading puts the perceived probability of higher unemployment at 45.3%, an increase of 1.5 percentage points, according to Kobeissi Letter. That is the highest since April 2020 and the third-highest level on record. Only the pandemic surge in March and April 2020 came in higher.
Younger Americans are leading the gloom. Consumers under 40 put the probability at 48.9%, the second-highest reading on record for that group. High earners are just as uneasy: among those making over $100,000, the figure rose to 51.5%, also the second-highest on record. The only higher reading was 53.9% in March 2020.
The trend has built through the year. Since January 2025, the metric has risen by 11.3 percentage points. Kobeissi Letter's takeaway: job anxiety is running high across income groups and age brackets.
TopicsKobeissi Letter · US consumers · Americans under 40 · $100,000+ earners
Source: x.com
Written by Paparazzi with AI. Not financial advice.