Jobs Day Misfire Highlights Weakness in Economy

ATLANTA – Today, the Job Creators Network released its analysis of what the real unemployment rate would be if the 62.8percent labor force participation rate (LFPR) remained at its pre-recession level of 66 percent. It finds that the real unemployment rate adjusting for the historic post-recession drop in the LFPR is 9.6 percent.

This morning the Bureau of Labor Statistics released its April jobs report, which found that only 160,000 jobs were created last month. The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 5.0 percent. This weak jobs number, coupled with the recent paltry first quarter GDP growth of 0.5 percent, highlights the persistent weakness in the labor market and general economy.

To identify the ongoing struggles of the labor market and small businesses and determine solutions to address them, JCN launched its Bring Small Businesses Back (BSBB) campaign earlier this year. As part of this campaign, JCN released a nationwide poll of small business owners this year which found that only 1 in 5 small business owners plan to hire additional employees over the next year, and only around one-quarter believe that doing business over the next year would be easier than the previous one.

Almost two thirds of small business owners polled said that over taxation and over regulation, are keeping them from thriving and nearly one third also said that lack of access to credit is another significant impediment to their growth.

View the poll results here. Read the white paper JCN released earlier this year assessing the state of American small businesses here. Find out more information about the campaign at DefendMainStreet.com.

“Today’s meager jobs number is reflective of the weakness in the broader economy, which still has not completely recovered from the Great Recession,” said Alfredo Ortiz, president and CEO of the Job Creators Network. “To truly get the economy working again, we must address the overregulation, overtaxation, and lack of access to credit that are holding businesses – and the labor market – back.”

To schedule an interview, contact Andrew Ransom at [email protected] or (916) 258-2396.

The Job Creators Network (JCN) is the voice of real job creators that has been missing from the debate on jobs and our economic crisis. JCN members talk about paychecks, not politics, helping the public and policymakers understand how to create jobs. For more information, please visit www.JobCreatorsNetwork.com.

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