September Brought Uptick in Jobs – Will Next Government Steps Help or Hurt?

Employers added 661,000 jobs in September, and the unemployment rate declined to 7.9 percent from 8.4 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said today in its monthly report. CEI experts expressed encouragement that deregulatory policies and re-openings are helping people recover financially from pandemic lockdowns and shutdowns this year but warned that more government action is needed – to deregulate and to reject a return to lockdowns.

Statement by Sean Higgins, CEI research fellow:

“Friday’s Labor Department report that the economy added 661,000 jobs, dropping the official unemployment rate to 7.9 percent, is welcome news but also a reminder the economy has a long way to go to fully recover. The good news is the data suggest people are eager to go back work and shop, eat in restaurants, and go to theaters. But they cannot and that’s holding the recovery back.

“If we want the economy to recover, we cannot revert to locking everything down in reaction to a recent surge in coronavirus cases. We must find better ways to allow people to safely interact, instead. Doling out more stimulus funds to businesses or extending unemployment relief is placing duct tape over the problems, while piling on more debt that taxpayers will eventually have to pay off.

“The department’s report found the sector with the largest growth was leisure and hospitality, which added 318,000 jobs in September. That accounted for about half of the overall employment gains in the last month. Bars and restaurants accounted for the largest part of that, adding 200,000 jobs, with the rest in gambling, amusements, and hotels. These gains are dramatic because hospitality was the sector hardest by the outbreak. Since February, that sector of the economy has recovered 3.8 million jobs but remains down more than 2.3 million from where it was at the beginning of the year. That’s about a third of the total 6.8 million jobs lost since February.

“Retail trade grew by 142,000 jobs over the last month, the largest part of it (40,000 jobs) coming from clothing outlets, indicating more people are out shopping. Retail is still down 483,000 jobs overall from February.

“The good news is these sectors can rebound quickly when given the chance. Doing that means allowing people to get out of their homes to re-engage safely with the outside world. That has to be the focus if we want the economy to recover.

Statement by Ryan Young, CEI senior fellow:

“The economy continues to create jobs, but the pace is slowing. It will be some time before the economy is back to normal, let alone everyday life. Unfortunately, there are still thousands of government-created barriers that keep people out of work. These include licenses, permits, entry barriers, excessive paperwork, and tariffs—not to mention looming antitrust threats against the very tech companies that help make remote work possible. Over-regulation is hindering virus response and economic recovery.

“President Trump and Congress should continue to eliminate never-needed regulations. Depending on how the election goes, further regulatory reform will a positive addition to the Trump legacy or the springboard for a second-term agenda. Either way, regulatory reform is the right thing to do to get people back to work.”