You’ve already heard the gory news on the jobs front. Most of it is definitely very, very ugly: More than 11 million people are out of work. Moe are expect to get pink slips. Unemployment is up to 7.2%. On January 26th alone – a day dubbed as “Black Monday” by many observers – employers announced more than 50,000 layoffs. But none of that means that jobs aren’t being created at all – or won’t be in 2009.
One bright spot, many agree, is that the federal government is hiring. Also, once the $800-billion plus economic recovery package passes – with Democrats controlling Congress there’s no question about if the bill will pass, only when, and at what size – job growth will follow throughout states across the country.
The Obama administration predicts 3.5 million new jobs will be created by the stimulus bill before the end of 2010. Even if team Obama’s estimates prove way off, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office still forecasts that an $800 billion stimulus package would produce 2.1 million to 3.6 million new jobs. Not a bad way to start bolstering a job market that’s been – let’s put a positive spin on it – struggling to turn around.
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