Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) said Tuesday that a new report put out by the Center for Economic and Policy Research signals the need for Congress to pass a bill he co-authored aimed at boosting the labor market.
“When I go back to my state and talk to folks, I see a lot of people really hurting and I see a lot of people who are out of work. We need this bill.”
Franken and Rep. Keith Ellison, each co-sponsors of the Senate and House versions of the Local Jobs for America Act, believe the report’s dim forecast for job growth greatly underscores the need for legislation.
The report, entitled, “The Urgent Need for Job Creation,” shows that the U.S. economy as a whole will not recoup all of the jobs lost since the start of the recession until March of 2014. Additionally, the report highlights the fact that, assuming the trend rate of growth in the labor force, the nation’s unemployment rate will not return to pre-recession levels until April 2021.