Alabama officials celebrate strong national September jobs report

Members of Alabama’s congressional delegation celebrated the nation’s strong September jobs report, which was released on Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

“It’s no surprise that our economy continues to thrive. This Congress, we’ve implemented policy changes that have increased wages, created jobs, & lowered unemployment rates. I’m determined to work with my colleagues to keep up this historic progress,” Senator Richard Shelby (R-AL) said in a tweet.

In a press release, Rep. Mo Brooks (AL-5) said that while the mainstream media continues to “obsess about other matters,” every day Alabamians are happy that Republican leadership has delivered real results on issues that matter.

“While Washington elites and national media obsess about other matters, working Americans rejoice at yet another great jobs report,” Brooks outlined. “In September, Americans celebrated a 3.7% unemployment rate, America’s best since 1969 and a continuation of the strongest economic boom America has enjoyed in more than a decade!”

The BOOM continues! The unemployment rate has reached the lowest point in 49 years. Our conservative, pro-growth policies are working! #BetterOffNow https://t.co/UHufukBvAO

— Rep. Bradley Byrne (@RepByrne) October 5, 2018

Brooks added, “The bottom line is that free enterprise works. Socialism doesn’t. Congress and President Trump’s tax cuts, deregulation, restoration of free enterprise principles, and fair trade policies have united to spur fantastic economic growth that benefits all of America. The result? More jobs. Higher pay. Small business optimism higher than at any time in the last 35 years. Economic growth rates at levels unseen in more than a decade. The most explosive DOW Jones jump in decades. All are great for American families.”

This just in: According to the September #JobsReport released this morning, unemployment hit its lowest point in almost 50 years — yet another sign that our pro-growth policies are helping American workers & our economy. #BetterOffNow More here: https://t.co/BGwSqSh2or pic.twitter.com/4SAU7qXCZA

— Rep. Martha Roby (@RepMarthaRoby) October 5, 2018

Brooks concluded by emphasizing that the November general election results will have a huge impact on whether pro-growth policies can continue.

“Gone are the days of anemic jobs reports and subpar economic performance. The American economy has been unleashed and is roaring along. This is what the American people are capable of when we embrace liberty-based, free enterprise economic policies and reject the feel-good socialist policies that have resulted in untold misery and despair in places that have succumbed to their siren song. The prosperity we’re seeing now will continue as long as America embraces free-market capitalism— the greatest engine for human advancement and wealth creation in history,” Brooks explained.

We landed a man on the moon in 1969, one of America’s greatest moments. It was also the last time the unemployment rate was this low. We are also planning to return to the moon & on to Mars. #MAGA. It’s more than just a hashtag. ⁦@realDonaldTrump⁩ https://t.co/LZqbawz266

— Rep. Robert Aderholt (@Robert_Aderholt) October 5, 2018

Key takeaways from the September BLS jobs report are:

America’s economy added 134,000 new, nonfarm payroll jobs in September 2018.
America’s economy added 2.7 million new, nonfarm payroll jobs over the past year.
America’s September unemployment rate was 3.7 percent, a year-to-year improvement of 0.5 points over the 4.2 percent unemployment rate of September 2017.
Unemployment rates for all major races and ethnicities improved over the past year:
1. African Americans benefitted the most. The African American unemployment rate improved by 1.0 percentage point (from 7 percent in September 2017 to 6 percent in September 2018).
2. The Hispanic American unemployment rate improved by 0.6 (5.1 percent to 4.5 percent).
3. The Caucasian American unemployment rates improved by 0.4 (3.7 percent to 3.3 percent).
4. The Asian American unemployment rate improved by 0.1 (3.6 percent to 3.5 percent).
Females (at a 3.3 percent unemployment rate) continued to do better than men (at a 3.4 percent unemployment rate).
Over the past year, the average weekly earnings for all non-farm American workers increased by $30.49, a significant 3.4 percent increase over September 2017.

Sean Ross is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn