Congressman Steven Horsford Releases Statement on August Jobs Report, Calls for Action on Critical Unemployment Relief

Statement

Today, Congressman Steven Horsford (NV-04), released the following statement regarding the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) August 2020 jobs report.

"The BLS reported an additional 1.4 million jobs and our unemployment rate fell to 8.4 percent in the month of August, a sliver of positive news that our economy is on a path to recovery. However, we still have a long way to go. 14 million Americans are still without a job and Nevada's unemployment rate remains at a high 16 percent. Now, without the weekly $600 federal supplement, struggling families are left to navigate this pandemic on their own," said Congressman Steven Horsford. "This is why Congress must pass my bill, the Back on Your Feet Act, to reinstate federal unemployment benefits for those without work and provide a bonus to those able to return to work safely while covering necessary expenses including childcare, transportation, housing and healthcare until their next paycheck. It will take years to fully restore our economy after the COVID-19 pandemic, but we must do all we can now to assist families and prevent another crisis in the future."

The leisure and hospitality sector, a key driver for Southern Nevada's economy, accounted for one-eighth of total job gains in August. Yet, employment in this industry is still down by 25 percent (or more than 4 million jobs) nationally and 16 percent in Nevada compared to February.

Congressman Horsford introduced the Back on Your Feet Act in July to extend federal unemployment assistance and provide a benefit for those reentering the workforce during the COVID-19 pandemic. Last month, he sent a letter urging House leadership to bring forward a vote on his bill to swiftly respond to the economic hardships brought by the coronavirus crisis.

Background:

Many workers have returned to their jobs or found new ones, but may still be struggling to afford PPE, child care, transportation, and other everyday expenses. Federal support is necessary not only for those facing unemployment, but also for Nevadans returning to work.

Specifically, the Back on Your Feet Act of 2020 would:

-Extend federal unemployment benefits through January 31, 2021, protecting over 30 million workers from losing the federal unemployment benefits enacted as part of the CARES Act.
-Provide one-time federal "Back on Your Feet Pay" in the amount of $3,600 to workers who are able to return to work safely, to help with higher costs of working during the pandemic and to provide income until the first paycheck arrives.
-Protect workers from losing unemployment benefits if they cannot return to work safely, or if they received past benefit overpayments through no fault of their own and cannot repay them.
-Provide an additional $2 billion to help states process unemployment applications and pay benefits, and require states and the Department of Labor to report on the number of people still waiting for benefits and develop "corrective action" plans for backlogs.

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