Positive Labor Report Helps Both Candidates

By Caitlin O’Beirne

A rise in job growth in the United States was reported in a Labor Department report on Friday morning.

The report said that jobs increased by 171,000 in the month of October. This is 84,000 more jobs than were reported in the past two months. This also exceeds the average amount of jobs for the month of October which is typically 153,000.

A slight rise in the unemployment rate from 7.8 percent to 7.9 percent was also reported. However, the rise could be because of the increase in jobs. The Labor Department only counts people as unemployed if they are looking for work.

Job growth was especially strong in health care, retail, and business services. Even construction work grew by 17,000 jobs.

The report may have an impact on the election and could be good news for President Barack Obama.

Vice President of Mizuho Corporate Bank said to Washington Times reporters, “Obviously these are positive numbers. It’s favorable for the current administration ahead of the election.”

Both presidential candidates used the report in their favor in public statements made on Friday.

At an Ohio rally Obama said, “We’ve created 5.4 million new jobs, and this morning we leaned companies hires more workers in October than any time in the last 8 months…We’ve made real progress, but we’re here today because we know we have more work to do.”

Romney also responded in a statement Friday morning saying that the report indicates that the economy isn’t making much progress.

Romney said, “Today’s increase in the unemployment rate is a sad reminder that the economy is at a virtual standstill. The jobless rate is higher than it was when President Obama took office, and there are still 23 million Americans struggling for work. On Tuesday, America will make a choice between stagnation and prosperity.”

A report is typically released the first Friday of every month. This is the last report before Tuesday’s presidential election.

Photo Courtesy: AP Images