Washington, D.C. — Today, Center for American Progress Economist Adam Hersh issued the following reaction to the announcement of August’s employment figures:
Today’s job market data show the economic recovery continuing forward, but slower than needed for people to make up ground on lost incomes and savings. The plodding recovery belies a longer-term crisis of widening inequality that undermines U.S. potential for economic growth. While jobs continue growing, 62 percent of new jobs created since the Great Recession are in low-productivity industries paying well below the national average wage. Nearly half a million new jobs are in the fast-food industry, where poor pay and conditions led workers to strike nationwide in August.
While it’s not clear why the Federal Reserve would taper quantitative easing in September given how far we are from its own employment and inflation targets, it is clear that House Republican leadership could add nearly 1 million jobs over the next year by preventing the ill-advised sequester spending cuts, and keep critical public services and investments from shutting down.
To speak with Adam Hersh about the monthly jobs report, please contact Katie Peters at [email protected] or 202.741.6285.
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