Lee Statement on October Jobs Report
Contact: Kristal DeKleer (202) 225-1882
Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA) issued the following response to the figures released by the Department of Labor showing a slight decline in unemployment rates:
“The U.S. gained just 80,000 new jobs in October and the national unemployment rate remains distressingly high at 9.0%. We must target investment and focus our efforts at rapidly reducing unemployment, especially among those hardest hit which continue to be communities of color – African Americans (15.1%), Hispanics (11.4%), and youth (24.1%).
“For 300 days in the majority, House Republicans have failed to enact any jobs measures or put forth any clear jobs agenda. Congress must enact President Obama’s American Jobs Act and put people back to work. We must ensure that the work of the Supercommittee (the Joint Committee on Deficit Reduction) is focused on economic growth, job creation, and preservation of the social safety net.
“I reiterate my call to Speaker Boehner to allow an up or down vote on H.R. 589, a bill I introduced that would provide fourteen weeks of benefits for those who have exhausted their unemployment benefits and are now off the books and in desperate need.
“Americans are waiting; Democrats have been prepared to act; and Republicans must join us in creating jobs and reigniting the American Dream for all.”
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