Over 650,000 jobs lost in March 2009?

Judgment made on April 3, 2009: Unemployment rate reached 8.5% with more than 663,000 jobs lost in March. This prediction came true, which 94% of the community got right. -- The Industry Standard

More than 4.4 million Americans have lost their jobs since the recession started in December 2007 and more than 12.5 million are currently out of work. The Labor Department reported that 651,000 people lost their jobs in February, an 8.1% increase from the prior month.

This is the third straight month where 650,000 or more jobs have been lost. Monthly U.S. job losses have more than doubled since the fall of Lehman Brothers on Sept. 15, 2009. 

Here are the staggering numbers:

Month                        Total job losses                      Unemployment rate

September 2008             321,000                                   6.2%

October 2008                  380,000                                  6.6%

November 2008               597,000                                  6.8%

December 2008               681,000                                  7.2%  

January 2009                  655,000                                  7.6%

February 2009                 651,000                                  8.1%

Prediction: Job losses will hit 650,000 or more in March. The Labor Department will report preliminary numbers for March 2009 on April 3, which will be used to judge this prediction.