WASHINGTON – Joint Economic Committee (JEC) Ranking Democrat Carolyn B. Maloney (D-N.Y.) issued the following statement Friday after the Department of Labor announced that the economy added 215,000 nonfarm jobs in March and the unemployment rate was little changed at 5.0 percent.  March marked the 73rd consecutive month of private-sector job growth, the longest streak on record.

“Job creation has been remarkably consistent over what is now more than six years of job growth. During this time, businesses have added more than 14.4 million jobs.  Even with these impressive job gains, too many Americans are struggling to make ends meet and to get back to where they stood before the Great Recession hit. 

“President Obama, Democrats in Congress and the Federal Reserve played key roles in helping to bring about recovery.  Research by economists Alan Blinder and Mark Zandi shows that without these joint efforts—most of which were opposed by Republicans—the recession would have lasted twice as long and job losses would have been about twice as great.

“There is much more we can do that will have a positive economic impact—upgrading our nation’s infrastructure, increasing the minimum wage, achieving equal pay for equal work and investing in education at every level.  But instead of working with Democrats, Republicans were unable to bring a budget to the floor before the House left for a two-week recess and unwilling to postpone the recess to do the important work of governing. 

“When we return, Congress will have just a few days to pass a budget by the April 15^th deadline. A budget should be a statement of values.  In this case, the absence of a budget reveals a culture of Republican dysfunction. It’s time Republicans work with Democrats to pursue policies that will help middle-class families get ahead.”

For more information, please go to the JEC Democratic homepage.