The percentage of Americans in the work force fell to 63.3 percent last month, the lowest level since 1979, according to statistics released today by the U.S. Department of Labor.
The U.S. in March gained a paltry 88,000 jobs and lost 3,000 manufacturing jobs, which pay better than flipping burgers at McDonald's.
The Wall Street Journal reports,
Employers slammed on the brakes in March, adding just 88,000 jobs and keeping the economic recovery from shifting to a higher gear despite a mending housing market and steady consumer and business spending.
The grim report, out Friday from the Labor Department, was the first slip back into five-digit job growth since June 2012 and a stark pullback from February's upwardly revised 268,000 gain.It's obvious why commercial activity isn't picking up -- and it has nothing to do with Baby Boomers retiring or a phony skills shortage. It has to do with job-killing trade deals.
Scott Paul, president of the Alliance for American Manufacturing, has the right idea:
President Obama can increase employment in the nation’s manufacturing sector if he takes action to hold China accountable for its continued violations of trade agreements, and follows through on campaign pledges to close tax loopholes that encourage outsourcing.
