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Jobs & the Economy

Creating jobs and expanding economic opportunity continues to be Democrats’ top priority.

Throughout the 117th Congress, House Democrats have partnered with President Biden to enact policies that expand economic opportunity for businesses, workers, and communities across America. Under President Biden and Congressional Democrats, the unemployment rate is at its lowest in more than 50 years with more than 10 million jobs created, helping more of our people get ahead in today’s economy and Make It In America.
 
Democrats pursue an economic agenda that helps American businesses create good-paying jobs and ensure that workers have the tools not only to get by but to get ahead in our global economy.  From raising the minimum wage to providing skills training and apprenticeship opportunities to ensuring equal pay for equal work, from making childcare more affordable to making it easier to save for retirement, Democrats’ economic policies are aimed at helping workers and their families attain real economic security at every stage of life. 
 
Democrats have also delivered historic legislation investing in infrastructure and greater access to high-speed internet, taking the lead in the clean-energy economy, and supporting innovation and entrepreneurship. The generational Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has already begun to expand economic opportunity for Americans in communities across the country and takes action to repair our nation’s roads, bridges, ports, and other infrastructure while creating nearly 1.5 million jobs annually over the next decade. It contains the first major American investment in climate resilience to help communities upgrade their critical infrastructure and mitigate the impact of climate change-driven extreme weather. Likewise, the Inflation Reduction Act also advances America’s clean energy goals, turbocharging clean energy research and transmission while promoting electric vehicle domestic manufacturing to reduce American dependence on gasoline while revitalizing our auto industry.
 
The CHIPS and Science Act includes bipartisan measures to revitalize the domestic semiconductor industry and spur research. By strengthening domestic supply chains, this law acts directly to accelerate American innovation in the long-term while acting immediately to address inflation and create good paying jobs. House Democrats will continue to champion skills training and education at every level – from early childhood learning through higher education – to prepare our people for success and advancement in a changing economy.  In all of these efforts, Democrats will continue to look for ways to make access to opportunities more equitable and to combat the lingering effects of legalized discrimination that continue to make it harder for minorities to access credit for loans, seek investment capital for startups, and build wealth to pass on to the next generation. 
 
With historic job creation under President Biden, House Democrats will continue to advance policies that expand economic opportunity for working families, support small businesses, and create better-paying jobs.


Related

Today the House passed the Small Business Lending Fund Act, following passage on Tuesday of its companion measure, the Small Business Jobs Tax Relief Act.

Today, the House passed the Small Business Lending Fund Act, legislation to promote lending from community banks to small businesses.
Small businesses are the job-creating engine of our economy. They employ more than half of all employees in the private sector, and they have created 64% of net new jobs over the past 15 years.

Today, the House will complete action on the Small Business Lending Fund Act, building on efforts to create jobs and grow the economy by encouraging lending from community banks to small businesses.

Let's start with two indisputable facts. First, both the financial system and the economy are in far better shape today than they were in the dark days of January or February 2009.

Earlier today, Leader Hoyer appeared on ABC's 'This Week.'

The Department of Labor reported that the number of laid-off workers continuing to claim jobless benefits fell by the largest amount since December 2008,

Today, the Department of Labor released the unemployment report for May showing that the policies adopted by President Obama and the Democratic Congress continue to have the intended effect of creating jobs and growing the economy.

Today, the Department of Labor released the jobs report for May, showing that our economy created 431,000 jobs and the unemployment rate dropped to 9.7%.

While the majority of jobs created in May were due to Census hiring, it is an encouraging sign for our economic recovery that the private sector created jobs as well.