Augusta, Maine (Friday, July 19, 2013) Garrett Martin, Executive Director of the Maine Center for Economic Policy (MECEP), issued the following statement concerning the June employment report released today by the Maine Department of Labor. The June unemployment rate for Maine was estimated to be 6.8%, which is statistically no different from the 7.3% it was a year ago.
“Today’s jobs report is no cause for celebration or political grandstanding. Maine continues to rank near the bottom of states in job growth and the unemployment rate is statistically no different than it was a year ago. Maine has recovered less than a quarter of all the jobs it lost as a result of the recession, and wage growth is almost nonexistent.”
“Instead of spinning the jobs report for political gain, Governor LePage should consider how his policy choices have hurt Maine’s economy and prolonged the pain for Maine workers. He rejected hundreds of millions of federal health care dollars that would have created 3,100 new jobs in the state. He refused to issue voter-approved bonds costing the state thousands of jobs while Maine roads and bridges crumble. His policies have also weakened Maine’s credit rating increasing the cost of future investments in our economy.”
MECEP economist Joel Johnson authored a blog post today that summarizes the latest jobs report and provides more details on the state of Maine’s labor market.
