The U.S. added 916,000 jobs in March, far exceeding expectations and offering a sign that the economy is strengthening even as the fight against the coronavirus pandemic continues. Heather Boushey, a member of the White House Council of Economic Advisors, pointed to the American Rescue Plan as part of the reason for the drastic surge in added jobs.
Boushey said focusing on vaccine distribution and providing Americans with additional income in the form of stimulus checks were confidence boosters for the economy.
"We don’t want to make too much of any one-month trend, but this is certainly a step in the right direction. And, I think it reflects all of the work we have done to try to contain the pandemic and to get all of that aid and support out to so many millions of families all across the country," she told Cheddar.
Average Wages Drop
Though the report blew expectations out of the water by roughly 300,000 jobs, data shows that recently hired Americans are earning less than those who were added to payrolls in previous months. Average earnings fell by a tenth of a percentage point. Boushey attributed the decline to the surge in rehires of low-wage workers. Jobs in sectors like leisure and hospitality, education, and construction account for many of the added roles last month.
Analysts expect average wages to continue slipping as more local economies reopen and people in low-wage positions are rehired even as the Federal Reserve expects inflation to rise.
"The wage numbers in recent months have been elevated because so many workers who were in those face-to-face jobs in retail or in the leisure and hospitality sectors that make less than average were out of work. So, now that they’re coming back in, you’re seeing that affect the average numbers," Boushey said.
"We know that even pre-pandemic when we were still in the longest recovery in U.S. recorded history, we were not seeing the kinds of wage growth that we really needed to see for families in the bottom and the middle of the wage distribution," she further explained. "And so as we looked at the American Rescue Plan, as we look at the American Jobs Plan, a core goal is to make sure that we’re not just creating jobs but that we're creating good jobs and we’re focused on making sure that there are jobs that can support a family."
Unemployment Racial Disparities
However, there is concern that trending growth could be skewed in the April jobs report because of rising COVID-19 infections. As a result, Boushey said the Biden administration’s first priority is to contain the virus and ramp up vaccination efforts with the issue of economic growth second.
Data in the March jobs report shows there are continuing unemployment disparities in the Black and Latino communities, and Asian Americans saw the unemployment rate in their community grow nearly a full percentage point from February. Boushey said she will be watching "very closely" to see if that was a single-month event or it is the first sign of a greater trend, although she noted Asian American unemployment is currently about average when compared to the overall economy.
For the Biden administration, its American Rescue Plan, which was signed in mid-March, "was an important step forward" in closing the wealth gap for minorities.
"If you go through the plan, there are so many pieces that are really targeted at making sure that we are creating those good jobs in all parts of our economy and that we are being really attentive to the inequities across communities, especially by race," she noted.
With the Russian invasion of Ukraine raging on, millions have turned to TikTok to stay up-to-date on the latest developments and get a first-hand look. The social media platform has been so prominent that the war has been dubbed "the first TikTok war" by many publications — and even the White House has taken notice. The Biden administration held a virtual briefing with 30 social media creators to discuss their role in communicating to their followers by countering what it deems as being misinformation. Ellie Zeiler, an 18-year-old TikTok star who attended the briefing, joined Cheddar to talk about the conference and her responsibilities as a social media creator. "How could you not be a little nervous or scared when you're getting your information and media all from this app? But also then you think back to, I guess, when media was changing between newspapers and TV, and I'm sure people were nervous about that too," she said. "So the fact is, is that people do really look to Tiktok and social media for their news."
U.S. markets closed the day at session lows as the Dow marked its fifth straight week of losses. Investors continue to weigh inflation and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and growing economic risk factors. George Seay, CEO of Annandale Capital, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
U.S. stocks ended Thursday's session lower as new CPI data show inflation continues to rise and the Russia-Ukraine war continues. Philip Palumbo, founder, CEO, & Chief Investment Officer of Palumbo Wealth Management, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
It's been an eventful past few weeks for the WNBA. One of the league's top players, Brittney Griner, remains in Russian custody after being detained at an airport last month. The league is also dealing with a scandal after fining a team for providing charter flights to their players. Emily Caron, sports business reporter for Sportico, joined Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
School nutrition experts warn that millions of children could go hungry as soon as this summer, after Congress excluded waivers that would extend universal lunch for children in school from the $1.5 trillion omnibus spending bill. Cheddar News speaks with Jessica Gould, chair of the public policy and legislation committee at the School Nutrition Association, about the issue.
The ongoing semiconductor chip shortage has been impacting everything from the purchase of cars to smartphones. Deputy Commerce Secretary Don Graves spoke with Cheddar about the Biden administration's efforts to combat the issue and if the current crisis in Ukraine will have any impact on the global supply chain problems for semiconductors. "We're working very closely with all of our partners and allies around the globe, just as we have on the export controls and sanctions that we've applied to Russia to deal with that needless aggression," he said. "We're also working with them on the challenges of raw materials for a range of industries, including the semiconductor industry. We believe that we are going to be able to meet the demand for the for the near term."
Deputy Commerce Secretary Don Graves spoke to Cheddar's Alex Vuocolo about the ongoing semiconductor shortages and the push from the Biden administration to cover the supply chain problem as well as look ahead to future-proofing it.
President Maxx Fenning and Vice President CJ Walden of PRISM, a Florida non-profit providing resources for LGBTQ youth, joined Cheddar News to discuss the negative repercussions of a Florida bill banning discussions of sexuality and gender identity in some classrooms.
