Jobless rate tops 10 pct. for first time since ‘83. Unemployment rate tops 10 percent for first time since 1983; 190,000 jobs lost in October. Nearly 16 million people can’t find jobs even though the worst recession since the Great Depression has apparently ended. Many economists worry that persistently high unemployment could undermine the recovery by restraining consumer spending, which accounts for 70 percent of the economy.

The Labor Department said Friday that jobless rate rose to 10.2 percent, the highest since April 1983, from 9.8 percent in September.