MNI BRIEF: Kashkari Says US Unemployment Higher Than Appears

Minneapolis Federal Reserve President Neel Kashkari said Wednesday that U.S. unemployment is much higher than it appears when you account for discouraged workers who have left the labor force.

"When you have 10% of Americans out of work today, that is a terrible, terrible economy for many people," he said during a webinar.

The Fed and Congress have learned from the 2008 recession to be more active in reviving the economy, he said. "We need to be much more aggressive in focusing on our economic recovery, so we don't leave people on the sidelines" and there are also signs the government is doing this, he said.

One drag is the pandemic is "still raging" and growth will be slow until it's resolved, he said.