If the recently revised jobs numbers from the suddenly under fire Bureau of Labor Statistics are any indication, the economy and the state of the workforce is in trouble.  The blinking red signals have been there for a while though. For months companies have been slowing down recruitment and hiring in response to the economic uncertainty caused by an unpredictable administration.  

At the same time, crackdowns on immigration and the continued acceleration of boomer retirements has shrunk the size of the workforce.  Now this: the latest job numbers for July tell the story—just 73,000 jobs added, plus downward revisions that erase 258,000 jobs from earlier reports. The bottom line is, the economy isn’t as strong as we thought.

And it looks like things could get worse.  While the unemployment rate still remains low at 4.2%, it’s our labor participation rate raising concerns. Over the past year our labor participation rate fell from 62.65% in July 2024 to 62.22% in July 2025, translating to almost 1.2 million fewer people ages 16 and over who are working or actively looking for a job.  Dig a little deeper and you’ll find that this trend could continue through the end of this decade.  David Kelly, chief global strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management predicts a shrinkage of nearly 300,000 workers each year through 2030.  

There’s a lot a play here.  First, many companies are banking on increased efficiencies and productivity from AI to offset any labor shortages.  In the meantime, they’re relying on draconian work policing measures to keep their existing labor force in line. It’s a big gamble that might not pay off.  If these labor participation numbers are any indication, we’re already seeing workers say thanks, but no thanks.  This won’t just have grave consequences for companies unable to meet their demand for workers.  But it’ll also impact the economy more broadly and our ability to fund the entitlements that rely on strong labor force participation rates.  

Typically, when companies call us, it’s often because a culture problem has grown into a crisis.  Right now, that crisis is national.  Leaders who want to be on the right side of history—morally and economically—must reject the trend of dehumanizing workers for short-term gains. Because we’re about to find out just how much power workers really have.