WASHINGTON (MNI) – Following is the text of a statement
issued Friday by Alan Krueger, Chairman of the Council of Economic
Advisers:

While there is more work that remains to be done, today’s
employment report provides further evidence that the U.S. economy is
continuing to heal from the wounds inflicted by the worst downturn since
the Great Depression. It is critical that we continue the policies that
are building an economy that works for the middle class as we dig our
way out of the deep hole that was caused by the severe recession that
began in December 2007.

Most pressing, Congress should pass an extension of middle class
tax cuts that President Obama proposed, and the Senate passed. This
extension would prevent the typical middle class family from facing a
$2,200 tax increase at the beginning of next year. In addition, the
President has proposed a plan that will enable responsible homeowners to
refinance their mortgage and take advantage of today’s historically low
interest rates. To create more jobs in particularly hard-hit sectors,
President Obama continues to urge Congress to pass elements of the
American Jobs Act, including further investment in infrastructure to
rebuild our Nation’s ports, roads and highways, and assistance to State
and local governments to prevent layoffs and to enable them to rehire
hundreds of thousands of teachers and first responders.

Today’s report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) shows that
private sector establishments added 104,000 jobs last month, and overall
non-farm payroll employment rose by 114,000. Revisions to the previous
two months added another 86,000 jobs. The economy has now added private
sector jobs for 31 straight months. Taking account of the preliminary
benchmark revision (+453,000) released last week, the economy has added
a total of 5.2 million private sector jobs during that period.

The household survey showed that the unemployment rate fell from
8.1 percent in August to 7.8 percent in September, the lowest rate since
January 2009. Labor force participation rose by 418,000 people in
September, and the labor force participation rate rose by 0.1 percentage
point. Over the last 12 months, the unemployment rate has decreased by
1.2 percentage points, the largest drop since February 1995.

Employment rose notably in health care and social assistance
(+44,500), transportation and warehousing (+17,100), restaurants and
bars (+15,700) financial activities (+13,000), and professional and
business services (+13,000). Manufacturing lost 16,000 jobs, primarily
in durable goods (-13,000).

As the Administration stresses every month, the monthly employment
and unemployment figures can be volatile, and employment estimates can
be subject to substantial revision. Therefore, it is important not to
read too much into any one monthly report and it is informative to
consider each report in the context of other data that are becoming
available.

** MNI Washington Bureau: 202-371-2121 **

[TOPICS: M$U$$$,MGU$$$,MAUDS$]