Jobs Growth in the U.S.

Jobs Growth in the U.S. failed to meet expectations for May 2005, when the smallest jobs growth in 21 months of 78,000 entering the workforce fell far below the 185,500 prediction. [1]

Earlier Statistics

On February 19, 2004, the White House web page on "Jobs & Economic Growth" stated that, in January 2004, "112,000 Americans Find Work in January" and the "Unemployment Rate Below Average Level of 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s."

Election 2004 Issue

Jobs growth in the U.S., or the lack thereof, emerged as a major issue for U.S. presidential election, 2004.

For example, Fox News reported on March 5, 2004, that "As a Labor Department report Friday showed February's job growth to be far less than expected, presumptive Democratic nominee John Forbes Kerry had a lot to work with as he criticized President Bush." [2]

Although employment has shrunk by 2.2 million jobs since January 2001, the larger problem is the lack of job growth. To keep up with the historic rate of job growth due to population growth, 7.6 million jobs should have been created. [3][4]

Quotes

• "'At this rate the Bush administration won't create its first job for more than 10 years,' Kerry told reporters on his way to New Orleans on Friday, [March 5, 2004] where he was attending a rally with several prominent Democrats, headed by Sens. John Breaux and Mary Landrieu." [5]

• "'Americans have a clear choice in this election,' [Kerry] continued. 'They can either suffer more and more job losses, or give George W. Bush a new job in November and start putting Americans back to work.'" [6]

• "If Democratic policies had been pursued over the last two-to-three years, the kind of tax increases both Kerry and Edwards are talking about, we would not have had the kind of job growth that we've had." -- Dick Cheney [7].

State of the Union 2003

In his State of the Union 2003 address, President George W. Bush announced The Jobs and Growth Act of 2003, which was signed on May 28, 2003. The Act promised that, in 2003, "91 million taxpayers will receive, on average, a tax cut of $1,126."

The Act concluded with the following statement:

"The President is optimistic that the Jobs and Growth Act of 2003 will grow the economy and create new jobs. The President will not be satisfied until every American who is looking for work can find it; every business has a chance to grow; and prosperity reaches every corner of America."

Child Labor

• Child Labour News Service web site.
• Sickness or symptom? Child labour is reviled. There is much debate as to how it can be reduced, The Economist, February 5, 2004.

Related SourceWatch Resources

• Bush/Republican Initiatives
• outsourcing
• State of the Union 2004
• U.S. budget deficit
• U.S. economy
• U.S. National Debt
• U.S. presidential election, 2004
• U.S. tax cuts
• U.S. unemployment
• war on poverty

External links

2004

• Jennifer Barrett, "'A Serious Jobs Crisis'. In his State of the Union address, George W. Bush pledged to help Americans gain the skills they need to find work, but critics wonder where those jobs will come from," NewsWeek/MSNBC.com, January 14, 2004.
• "State of the Union Rhetoric vs. Reality: Job Training Proposal," Center for American Progress, January 20, 2004.
• "Bush Talks Job Training in Address, But Cuts Funds," Daily Mis-Lead / MisLeader.org, January 21, 2004.
• Editorial: "State of the Union/It's not good, thanks to Bush," Star Tribune, January 21, 2004.
• Edmund L. Andrews, "Bush Officials Offer Cautions on White House Jobs Forecast," New York Times, February 18, 2004. Also see Brad DeLong's analysis of Andrews' article: "Why Oh Why Can't We Have a Better Press Corps and Why Oh Why Are Ruled by These Idiots?"
• "White House retreats on predictions of new jobs," AP, February 18, 2004.
• "Jobs Report Doesn't Do Bush Any Favors," Fox News, March 5, 2004.
• Mike Glover, "Kerry, in South, Rips Bush on Job Losses," AP, March 5, 2004.
• Tim Ahmann, "Job Growth Anemic in February," Reuters, March 5, 2004: "The U.S. economy added a paltry 21,000 jobs last month, according to a surprisingly weak government report on Friday that turned up the heat on President Bush as he seeks re-election."
• Paul Krugman, "Promises, Promises," New York Times, March 9, 2004: "Despite a string of dismal employment reports, the administration insists that its economic program, which has relied entirely on tax cuts focused on the affluent, will produce big job gains any day now. Should we believe these promises?"
• David Donelly, "Ohio and Bush: Timken, Tax Breaks, and Job Loss," Campaign Money Watch, March 10, 2004: "On April 24, 2003, President Bush traveled to Timken Company's Canton plant to promote his tax plan. In a speech to workers, he promised that the tax cut plan 'means more money for investments, more money for growth and more money for jobs.' ... Numerous studies have refuted that claim, showing that while the President's tax cuts rewarded wealthy Americans with tens of thousands of dollars in tax windfalls, the rest of America actually received relatively little. The average Bush tax cut for the wealthiest one percent of Americans is $938,000, reports Citizens for Tax Justice. ... According to Reuters, the Chairman of Timken Company, W.R. Timken, made $2.62 million in 2003, clearly placing him in the wealthiest one percent of Americans. ... Two months later, W.R. Timken co-hosted a fundraiser for Bush's campaign in Akron which raised $600,000, and earned Timken 'Ranger' status (for those who raise more than $200,000 for the campaign). ... Then, in September last year, Timken Company announced it was laying off 700 workers, adding more pain to one of the jobless recovery's most hardest-hit states."
• Martin Crutsinger, "Bush Nominee Withdraws After Kerry Remark," AP, March 11, 2004: "A Nebraska business executive withdrew from consideration to be President Bush's point man on manufacturing Thursday after presumptive Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry raised questions about his stance on shifting U.S. jobs to foreign countries. ... The Bush administration said Anthony Raimondo's withdrawal was related to Nebraska political issues and not the flap raised by the Kerry campaign. ... But the nomination had appeared in doubt after Kerry's campaign had raised questions of why the Bush administration was picking someone to guide government efforts to halt the hemorrhage of American manufacturing jobs who had laid off 75 of his own workers in 2002 after announcing he was constructing a $3 million plant in China."
• Paul Krugman, "No More Excuses on Jobs," New York Times, March 11, 2004: "As job growth continues to elude the U.S. economy, we're hearing two main excuses from the Bush administration and its supporters: that the real situation is much better than you're hearing, and that to the extent employment is lagging, it's the result of factors outside the administration's control. But after three years of extravagant promises and dismal results, the time for excuses has passed. ... In short, things aren't as bad as they seem; they're worse. But should we blame the Bush administration? Yes -- because it refuses to learn from experience."
• "More U.S. Jobs Shipped Overseas," CBS News, March 15, 2004: "The economy is not producing nearly enough jobs to replace the ones that are being lost to a cheaper workforce overseas."
• Tim Kane, "Labor's Lost Jobs," New York Times, April 7, 2004.

2005

• "Sharp slowdown in US job growth," BBC, June 3, 2005.