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Hagan and Bernanke highlight job growth policies
Story Date: 7/18/2011
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Source: PRESS RELEASE, 7/15/11
U.S. Senator Kay Hagan (NC) and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke highlighted policies that would help unemployed workers during Thursday's Senate Banking Committee Hearing.
“Chairman Bernanke, I can't tell you how alarmed I was on Friday of this past week when the Bureau of Labor Statistics released the employment reports and there are over 430,000 people unemployed in my state now that are looking for work,” said Hagan.
“I'm very concerned, too, about the persistently high unemployment rate among veterans. We have quite a few veterans [returning from Iraq and Afghanistan] in North Carolina, and over 13 percent of these veterans are currently unemployed right now.
“What can be done in the short term to boost demand, and help get our citizens back to work?”
Bernanke responded that, “Congress might want to look at some targeted programs. For example, one of the issues that we've been talking about is the effects on skills of long-term unemployment. Veterans who have perhaps been out of the labor force for a while are coming back.”
Bernanke went on to say, “[O]ne thing to look at would be, you know, what can we do to help unemployed workers refresh their skills so that they will be available and eligible for employment when job opportunities arise.”
The AMERICA Works Act and Hire a Hero Act, which Hagan introduced in the Senate earlier this year, address Bernanke's policy recommendations. The AMERICA Works Act will ensure that job training translates into real-world job readiness. The bill creates a nationwide credentialing program -- in industries from welding to biotechnology -- to sync job-training programs with the needs of local employers. The Hire a Hero Act, a bipartisan, bicameral bill, which is fully paid for, extends the Work Opportunity Tax Credit to include current members of the Guard and Reserve, and makes the tax credit permanent for veterans.
“My number one priority is jobs, jobs, jobs; and I continue to work to advance these important bills in Congress,” said Hagan.
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