Even though the most recent recession is said to have ended in November 2001, the unemployment rate has been increasing. Unemployment statistics have made the decision by the National Bureau of Economic Research to declare an economic recovery controversial. The bureau said that it had to rely on GDP to measure economic growth, even if jobs have yet to catch up. Even Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, has noted that companies have been able to grow while cutting jobs.
See "Recession Ended in Late 2001, Experts Say, Even Though Payrolls Continue to Shrink", Peter G. Gosselin, Los Angeles Times, July 17, 2003