Ahead of the release of the September Jobs Report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Groundwork’s Acting Executive Director Kitty Richards released the following statement:
“Friday’s jobs numbers come at a delicate moment for our economy, and I will be watching for signs of continued wage growth, a growing labor force, and whether the economy is still delivering for those historically excluded from sharing in the nation’s prosperity.
“Over the last few years, big public investments have fueled one of the fastest labor market recoveries in history, ensuring a major recession did not yet again lead to a slow, painful, and unequal recovery. The results speak for themselves. We’ve had two years of historic job growth, unemployment has hit record lows, and workers have been empowered to band together and fight for better wages and benefits.
“But the risks to this progress are clear to anyone watching the theater on Capitol Hill over the past week. Extremists in the House have returned to the same destabilizing hostage-taking tactics that caused so much damage after the Great Recession in an attempt to revive the failed formula of austerity, union-busting, and tax handouts for the rich. Families have already paid a steep price, and our economy simply cannot afford more cuts to the very investments that have consistently strengthened economic security and put workers on stronger footing.
“The timing of this congressional dysfunction could not be worse. Millions of cash-strapped borrowers are set to resume student loan payments this month and the Fed’s misguided rate hiking campaign is still working its way through the system, putting basic necessities like housing further out of reach and threatening the progress workers are making in demanding higher wages.
“Policymakers should protect the progress of the last two years by investing in workers and families, not take us backward with damaging budget cuts and unnecessary rate hikes.”
Email press@groundworkcollaborative.org to speak with Kitty Richards about what to expect from tomorrow’s jobs numbers.
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