Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer and Representative Carolyn Maloney, Chairman and Vice-Chair of the Joint Economic Committee (JEC) respectively, held a hearing on the newly released Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) monthly employment figures with Commissioner Keith Hall on Friday, March 7, 2008 at 9:30 am in the  Dirksen Senate Office Building , Room 628.  The hearing, entitled “The Employment Situation: February 2008”  addressed the new jobs report released that morning.  The new jobs report examined the change in national unemployment rates and non-farm payroll employment figures over the past month.  The hearing’s second panel focused on the long-term unemployed and unemployment insurance benefits.  As more Americans struggle economically, with job growth stalling and wages falling, the committee analyzed the latest developments in the labor market, the best barometer of our nation’s economic health.