Congresswoman Barbara Lee on March Jobs Numbers
Washington, D.C. – Congresswoman Barbara Lee released the following statement today after the Department of Labor announced that the economy added 192,000 jobs. With businesses adding 192,000 jobs, this marks the 49th consecutive month of private sector job growth and recovering all the private sector jobs lost in the economic devastation of the Bush recession:
“Today's jobs report shows our economy continues to move in the right direction. Yet with millions of Americans across the country still struggling, Congress must act immediately to create jobs and build an economy that works for all.
“The Republicans’ latest budget is taking us in the exact wrong direction, would result in the loss of over a million jobs and would undermine our economic recovery. The American people deserve so much better. Though we have had some growth, Republican policies are holding the country back and leaving some behind. When we see unemployment rates in the African American community of 12.4%, up from 12.0% and unemployment among Hispanics at 7.9%, down from 8.1%, and a staggering 20.9% for our youth, we know that the economic recovery isn’t reaching everyone. We’ve got to put Americans back to work with a special focus on getting the long term unemployed back to work, as well as ensuring that our nation’s most vulnerable have a pathway to the American Dream, and that starts with a good-paying job.”