May 16, 2006
Senator Dodd today met with Connecticut members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers. They discussed the economy, the need to stop outsourcing of American jobs and ways to strengthen Connecticut's aerospace and defense industries.

Recently, a White House economic report suggested that fast-food restaurant jobs should be reclassified as manufacturing jobs. In the eyes of the Administration, an 18-year-old serving french fries at a burger joint is now on par with someone with 25 years of experience wiring nuclear submarines for Electric Boat.

This reclassification, of course, would not help a single American find work. But it would conveniently hide the 2.7 million manufacturing jobs lost since President Bush took office.

A few weeks ago, Americans who called a government food stamp information line in one state made a startling discovery: their calls were being routed to customer service representatives in India. Men and women struggling to find a good job were shocked to learn that their tax dollars were employing workers 7,000 miles away.

The Bush Administration and its allies speak of an economic “recovery.” Yet millions of hard-working Americans still cannot find jobs. Since this Administration took office, 2.9 million private sector jobs have been lost. Barring a miraculous turnaround, this Administration will be the first since that of Herbert Hoover to preside over an economy with a net job loss.

Hard work yields great rewards. Virtually all of us have heard a variation of this at some point in our lives. In America, we are told, opportunity is abundant for those willing to work for it.

But it’s hard to sell that line to the 9.4 million Americans – including nearly 90,000 Connecticut residents – who are out of a job today. These Americans are ready and willing to work. But cutbacks in virtually every field, from investment banking to construction, continue to push qualified Americans off of payrolls and onto unemployment rolls.