Being 44th in the nation in jobs is nothing to celebrate
Republicans should spend less time spinning troubling job and wage numbers, more time trying to put people back to work
MADISON – Assembly Democratic Leader Peter Barca (D-Kenosha) issued the following statement today after the Walker Administration released new data in an attempt to spin Wisconsin’s lagging record on jobs and wages. The data put out by the Department of Workforce Development will not be reviewed by the federal government and able to be compared to other states until the end of June.
This follows a troubling pattern where the Walker Administration continually attempts to avoid the perspective and scrutiny provided by a national comparison on jobs.
“If Republicans spent half as much time creating jobs as they do spinning lackluster job numbers, Wisconsin might not be falling so far behind in job creation,” Barca said. “Wisconsin also ranks 45th in wage growth according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics and dead last in short-term job growth according the conservative U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
“The Walker Administration neglects to mention is that Wisconsin was 11th in the nation in job growth the year before the governor took office. I find it highly disturbing that the governor, his partisan cabinet secretaries and Republican legislators are all patting each other on the back now that we’ve plummeted to 44th.
“Spinning deeply troubling job numbers and telling everyone ‘it’s working’ when it clearly is not working for middle-class Wisconsinites is getting in the way of real economic growth in our state. These same people also claim things are fine at the Gov. Walker’s troubled jobs agency, despite a stinging audit showing WEDC authorized illegal loans or tax credits, lost track of loans and spent taxpayer money on such questionable items as alcohol and iTunes gift cards.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
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