McKeon: On Eve of Labor Day, New Jobs Report an Added Sign of Momentum for American Workers

WASHINGTON, D.C. – With Labor Day only a few days away, U.S. House Workforce Committee Chairman Howard P. “Buck” McKeon (R-CA) today pointed to the latest U.S. Labor Department employment report as further evidence of continued momentum for U.S. workers and their families.  The new reports shows 128,000 new jobs created in the month of August.  The nation’s unemployment rate fell to 4.7 percent.

            “As we enter Labor Day weekend and the fall months ahead, our economy continues to move along at a steady clip,” McKeon said.  “Republican policies on education and training, health care, and retirement security have shaped a favorable job market for millions of American workers.  Momentum remains squarely on the side of our growing economy, and our nation’s working families are reaping the benefits.”

McKeon also highlighted a new report published this week by the U.S. Department of Labor.  America’s Dynamic Workforce 2006 included a laundry list of economic data that underscore the strength of the U.S. job market.  Among the facts included in the report:

• More than five and a half million new jobs have been created in the U.S. since August 2003;

• The national unemployment rate averaged 4.7 percent in the first half of 2006 and dropped to that same level in August, a full percentage point lower than the average unemployment rate in the 1990s;

• In June 2006, the total number of jobs in the United States reached an all-time high: 135.2 million – more than two and a half million more jobs than the previous high.  Monthly employment reports announced since then have only increased that number;

• Wages are increasing more than one and a half times faster than in the early 1990s, and the average level of compensation was seven percent higher in 2005 than in 2000.

“The naysayers are doing our nation’s workers no favors,” concluded McKeon.  “Our economy is strong, and our job market continues to grow.  We’ve proven that pessimism and hand-wringing don’t put more Americans to work; policies that promote job creation and less bureaucracy in our education and training programs do.  These are the policies championed by Republicans in Congress, and we’ll continue fighting for them.”

Further information on Republican efforts on behalf of American workers is available online at http://edworkforce.house.gov/issues/109th/workforce/wia/wia.htm.

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