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Congresswoman Wilson's Statement on National December Unemployment Rate

U.S. Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.) today issued the following statement on the national December unemployment rate dropping from 8.6 percent to 8.5 percent:

U.S. Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.) today issued the following statement on the national December unemployment rate dropping from 8.6 percent to 8.5 percent:

“Under President Obama, we have now seen 22 straight months of private sector job growth, but it is clear that much more needs to be done to get the unemployed back on the job. The problems we face did not happen overnight and won’t be solved overnight either.

“While we have been proposing countless ways to put even more Americans back to work, the Republicans have been doing everything they can over the past three years to keep the brakes on our recovery. The Republicans opposed President Obama’s American Jobs Act and they have failed to produce a true jobs bill this Congress. I urge my Republican colleagues to put politics aside and do the right thing for working Floridians and their families.”

The private sector added 212,000 jobs in the month of December, with the unemployment rate dropping from 8.6 percent to 8.5 percent.

After the enormous success of the job fair that Congresswoman Wilson held last year, she will be holding another one this spring that will focus on the travel and tourism industry, as a means of lowering the local unemployment rate by connecting South Florida employers with prospective employees.

Congresswoman Wilson is also excited about the private sector’s involvement in the Obama administration’s Summer Jobs+ program, which will create nearly 180,000 employment opportunities for low-income youth in the summer of 2012.

“Summer Jobs+ will give our young people the opportunity to earn the skills and work ethic that they need to succeed,” said Rep. Wilson. “It’s important for their future, and for the future of our country.”


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Rep. Frederica S. Wilson is a first-term Congresswoman representing the 17th District of Florida, including Northern Miami-Dade and Southeast Broward Counties. She is a former state legislator and school principal and the founder of the 5000 Role Models for Excellence Project, a mentoring program for young males at risk of dropping out of school.