Filed under: News, The Economy
On the heels of September's mixed unemployment report, the Congressional Black Caucus renewed its call for President Barack Obama and Congress to do something to specifically address the nation's high black joblessness rate.
The country's unemployment rate remained stuck at 9.6 percent, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics. The economic monthly report was a mix of good news and bad. The good: The private sector added 64,000 jobs last month. The bad: Government agencies cut 159,000 jobs, many of them federal Census workers and state and local employees.
Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.), chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, said the September numbers highlight the need for Congress and the White House to take more concrete steps to reduce unemployment, especially in the black community.
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"Unemployment rates for African-Americans and Latinos remain unbearably high at 16.1 percent and 12.4 percent; chronic unemployment is also a very serious issue that needs to be addressed," Lee said. "Forty-one point seven percent of unemployed persons have been jobless for 27 weeks or more, signifying the need for job creation in minority communities that are most seriously affected by a recession."
Read the rest at BlackAmericaWeb.com
BV -- TALK BACK!
-Do you agree with the CBC?
-Dr. Boyce Watkins addressed this issue first on BlackVoices.com weeks ago. Are you upset that the CBC is just beginning to focus on this issue now?
-What are some solutions you have for solving the problem of persistently higher African American unemployment?
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