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The Bush Economic Record: Weakest Job Creation in Modern History


June 30, 2005
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Slowest Pace of Job Creation Since the 1930s

  • The Bush Administration is the first in over 70 years to experience no net private sector job creation. (U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics)
  • The current employment upturn is shaping up to be the weakest of modern business cycles. By this time during the recession of the early 1990s, the economy had already generated 6.8 million new jobs. Under the Bush Administration, fewer than 2.5 million new jobs have been created since the last recession ended in November 2001. (Long Road to Zero, Center for American Progress, 6/2/05)
  • The overall unemployment rate remains above 5 percent, with 1.6 million more unemployed Americans now than at the start of the Bush presidency.
  • Long-term unemployment has more than doubled to 1.53 million Americans during the Bush Administration. The Labor Department's latest report showed that one in five unemployed persons are out of work for more than 26 weeks. (U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics)

Five Years of Failed Republican Leadership: Manufacturing Jobs in Steep Decline

  • A total of 2.8 million jobs have been lost in the manufacturing sector since President Bush took office. (U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics)
  • Manufacturing jobs represent 11 percent of U.S. non-farm employment, but have accounted for about 120 percent of jobs lost during the Bush Administration. (U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics)
  • Manufacturing employment is now at the lowest level in 50 years. (U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics)
  • The downward trend continues with factories cutting employment in eight of the last nine months (U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics) and General Motors announcing plans to eliminate at least 25,000 manufacturing jobs in the United States by the end of 2008. (Bloomberg, 6/7/05)

 

Republicans Do Nothing As U.S. Jobs Move Overseas

  • Overall private sector employment was hurt by job losses at U.S. multinational companies who shifted more jobs to their overseas operations.
  • These firms reduced their U.S. workforce by 2.1 percent in 2003, following a 3.0 percent reduction in 2002 and a 4.1 percent reduction in 2001. (Bureau of Economic Analysis, April 2005)
  • At the same time, employment at their foreign affiliates based overseas increased by 1.2 percent in 2003, following a 1.0 percent increase in 2002 and a 0.1 percent increase in 2001. (Bureau of Economic Analysis, April 2005)

Majority of Americans Continue to Say Jobs Are Hard to Find

  • According to the Pew Research Center, the percentage of Americans expressing that jobs remain hard to find in their communities rose from 55 percent in August 2004 to 60 percent in May 2005. (Economic Concerns Fueled by Many Woes, Pew Research Center, 6/1/05)
  • While lower-income workers are most troubled by job shortages, nearly half of those with household incomes greater than $75,000 a year said that jobs are scarce. (Economic Concerns Fueled by Many Woes, Pew Research Center, 6/1/05)
  • Seventy-one percent of Americans believe the job situation is a very big or big problem. Only 18 percent of the public believe that national economic conditions a year from now will be better than they are currently, a decline from 36 percent in August 2004. (Economic Concerns Fueled by Many Woes, Pew Research Center, 6/1/05)

 

Income Disparity Rising With Record Bonuses for Corporate Executives and Shrinking Wages for the Rest of America's Workers

  • Average salary increases for executives at the top of the pay scale rose by 5 percent in 2004. Average bonuses however, jumped by 17 percent. (Towers Perrin, May 2005)
  • CEOs at petroleum companies and metal manufacturing firms experienced among the highest bonus increases, with an average increase of 52% and 56%, respectively. (Towers Perrin, May 2005)
  • Meanwhile, real wages are falling at their fastest rate in 14 years. (Financial Times, 5/10/05)
  • The Labor Department reported a disappointing $16.03 in real average hourly earnings for the month of May-below the $16.07 level when the recession ended in November 2001. (U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics)
  • These depressed numbers mean that hourly wages are lagging behind inflation, which came in at 3.5 percent in April.
  • A report by the Financial Times and the Economic Policy Institute warned: "Stingy pay rises mean many Americans will have to work longer hours to keep up with the cost of living, and they could ultimately undermine consumer spending and economic growth." (Financial Times, 5/10/05)
  • According to a recent poll, 1 in 5 middle income families said they did not have enough money last year for medical care and other necessities. Nearly 6 in 10 Americans said they do not earn enough to lead the kind of life they want. (Economic Concerns Fueled by Many Woes, Pew Research Center, 6/1/05)