WASHINGTON, D.C. — According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, just 235,000 jobs were added in August as the economy struggles with the Delta variant and government disincentives to work. The overall unemployment rate fell by 0.2% to 5.2%, as the economy fell far below even the lowest expectations. Fewer adult women were in the labor force than the previous month even as their unemployment rate fell. Leisure and hospitality, a female-dominated sector that had consistently added jobs for months in a row, flatlined, but food services and drinking establishments dropped an astonishing 41,500 jobs last month.

Patrice Onwuka, director of the Center for Economic Opportunity at Independent Women’s Forum, issued the following statement:

“This woeful jobs report offers little to celebrate this Labor Day. More women are on the sidelines of the labor force at a time when we would expect working mothers to re-enter the jobs market. Retailers, which typically begin to staff up for the upcoming holiday season, shed 29,000 jobs. Dining and beverage establishments, which offer great opportunities for those just starting out or looking for flexible work, shed 42,000 jobs. Small businesses have been crushed by the worker shortage and that pressure is not easing. Meanwhile, employed workers are losing more of their income to inflation each day.

“Against these headwinds, liberals in Congress want to plow ahead with the $3.5 trillion Bernie-Biden Budget that will undoubtedly drive inflation higher and disincentivize work. They will overstimulate the economy by flooding various sectors with cash and subsidies. Meanwhile, they propose beefing up federal agencies to enact radical climate policies that will raise prices for consumers. This spells trouble for family budgets. Flexible jobs that workers, especially women, depend on will disappear and those workers will be driven out of the economy for good.

“Americans want better.”

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