SBE Council Talks Jobs

The Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council (SBE Council) issued a statement on the jobs data for March.

Raymond J. Keating, chief economist for SBE Council said, "Some positive trends are starting to take hold when it comes to jobs. The household survey, which captures small business activity, revealed that employment rose by 291,000 in March, after a 250,000 increase in February. In addition, the labor force was up a bit, increasing by 220,000 over the past two months. Private payrolls also were up by 240,000 in February and 230,000 in March. However, all of this must be viewed in the context of all employment indicators struggling to emerge from great depths. For example, the labor force participation rate (64.2 percent in March) and employment ratio (58.5 percent in March) still remain at quarter-century lows."

Keating added, "We have a long way to go, and risks persist that could derail economic and employment growth, including misguided energy policies that exert upward pressures on energy costs; inflationary monetary policy; an absence of serious U.S. efforts to reduce trade barriers; and runaway federal spending that threatens substantial tax increases not far down the road, when what the economy desperately needs is substantial, pro-growth tax relief."

SBE Council President & CEO Karen Kerrigan observed, "The resilience of the private sector is extraordinary given the uncertainties business owners continue to express about the strength of the recovery and government policies. Currently, they are very worried about inflation, high energy costs and the potential for either or both to undermine economic recovery. President Obama and Congress can help to accelerate the rate of job growth if they work together to stabilize tax rates, and advance reforms that will make the U.S. tax system more globally competitive. In addition, it would be wise for the President to institute a cooling off period on the regulatory front, while supporting efforts in the Congress to cut government spending. These basic measures would help to bolster business confidence, and unleash a torrent of new investment and hiring."