Sen. Martin Heinrich

JEC News:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Sen. Martin Heinrich, (D-NM), Chairman of the U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee (JEC), released the following statement today after the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that nonfarm payroll employment increased by 303,000 in March and the unemployment rate ticked down to 3.8 percent.

The unemployment rate was 6.4 percent for Black workers, 4.5 percent for Hispanic workers, 3.4 percent for white workers, 2.5 percent for Asian workers, and 3.9 percent (not seasonally adjusted) for American Indian and Alaska Native workers.  

“The U.S. economy continues to outperform expectations, with 303,000 jobs added in March to reach 38 consecutive months of job growth and over 15 million new jobs since President Biden took office. Unemployment has remained under 4 percent for the longest stretch in 50 years, and wages are going up, especially for low- and middle-income workers.

“Our workforce is the strongest when everyone is fully able to participate. One way to ensure we keep parents in the labor force is by working towards solutions to lower the cost of child care. That’s why I’ve put together a hearing next week to examine the investments needed so we can help families to access affordable early childhood care and education.”