Eighty Thousand Jobs Added in June – But Congress Must Create More
by Clyde Weiss | July 06, 2012
The latest job numbers released today are heartening, as they show an increase of 80,000 jobs in June. But make no mistake: The economy is fragile as it continues to recover from the Great Recession, and there are not enough jobs being created in either the private or public sectors to grow it back to health soon.
Total employment in the public sector was actually down 4,000 jobs. At the federal level, 7,000 fewer jobs and 1,000 lost jobs at the state level demonstrate the consequences of right-wing attacks on public service workers and the 2010 election that placed anti-worker governors and legislators in statehouses nationwide. Women in particular continue to suffer: From August 2008 to May 2012, women in state and local government lost 454,000 jobs.
Economic recovery depends on creating new jobs, and public service workers are essential if communities are going to deliver services that people depend on every day, such as public works, transportation maintenance, 911 emergency communications and health care workers, to name a few.
Public employees continue to face significant layoffs, which will further slow the economic recovery. That’s why Congress must act to pass President Obama’s American Jobs Act, proposed nearly 10 months ago but blocked by Republican lawmakers who value short-term political advantage and tax cuts for corporations and the richest 1 percent over restoring the nation’s economic health. If passed, the legislation would provide new funding to protect public sector jobs, extend unemployment benefits, modernize schools and improve public infrastructure.
We lost more than 8 million jobs because of Wall Street and corporate excesses that led to the Great Recession. But, for 28 straight months, the economy has added 4.4 million jobs private sector jobs. While it’s not enough, we know Congress can do more to restore jobs. If Congress truly wants to create jobs – as they claim in political stump speeches – they must pass the American Jobs Act. Learn more here.
