Top economist says latest jobs data shows a ‘jobless expansion’ with no historical precedent—and it’s ‘gut-wrenching’ for the middle class

The U.S. economy is still booming. Layoffs haven’t spiked. The stock market continues to climb. And yet, when a fresh batch of labor market data landed Tuesday, one of the country’s most respected economists said it made her stomach drop.

“It’s gut-wrenching,” Diane Swonk, chief economist at KPMG, told Fortune. “We’re growing, but we can’t generate jobs.”

“Rock bottom” hiring

Two releases—the November Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) from the U.S. Bureau...