Pelosi Statement on October Jobs Report

Contact: Brendan Daly/Nadeam Elshami/Drew Hammill, 202-226-7616

Washington, D.C. - Speaker Nancy Pelosi released the following statement on the October jobs report issued today by the Department of Labor.

"Today's job numbers are difficult news, surpassing 10 percent unemployment. They remind us that more work must be done before American families and businesses see job gains and a drop in unemployment. Taking action to create jobs continues to be our most urgent and pressing priority.

"Congress has taken critical - and necessary - steps to protect the middle class and set the stage for economic growth. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act has created or saved nearly 1 million jobs so far, and our rescue efforts have placed the financial system on firmer footing. Today, President Obama will sign legislation the House passed yesterday that extends unemployment benefits for those hardest hit by the economic downturn, expands the first-time homebuyer tax credit, and provides tax cuts for American businesses - giving a lifeline to those out-of-work and helping to create American jobs with the multiplier effect these measures have on our economy. And making health care affordable for American families and businesses will help them invest in our economy, which will generate jobs.

"The results of these investments in our families and workers are starting to emerge. After watching an average of 673,000 jobs disappear in the final three months of the Bush Administration, the 190,000 jobs lost in October are fewer than the jobs lost in September. But we must do more. While the last three months saw our gross domestic product grow for the first time since the recession began in 2007, economists predict that the unemployment rate will increase slightly in the coming months before American businesses begin rehiring.

"Statistics mean little for those who have lost a job, taken a pay cut, or watched their loved ones searching for work. Congress will continue to work every day on new and innovative approaches to expanding the job market, and do everything in our power to put Americans back to work."