Fact Check: Biden Misleads on Job “Creation” Statistics
The May jobs report showed alarming signs in the labor market. The household survey data—the part of the jobs report data that looks directly at American workers—showed that 440,000 more Americans became unemployed, a sign that the labor market may be beginning to deteriorate in the face of raging inflation and sky-rocketing interest rates.
President Biden released a statement in response to the May jobs figures praising his Administration’s so-called job creation numbers. Biden’s White House tweeted that they have added more jobs under his watch than any President has in a single four-year term.
These claims are misleading. Here’s why.
- Recovery versus “Creation.” Nearly 72 percent of all job gains since 2021 were simply jobs that were being recovered from the pandemic, not new job creation. In fact, when looking at today’s economy compared to pre-pandemic levels, employment is up only by 3.7 million.
- On the other hand, prior to the pandemic, job creation under President Trump was 6.7 million—3 million more jobs than the current President.
- Labor Force Participation Was Stronger Under Trump. The labor force participation rate remains 0.7 percentage points lower under Biden than it was when President Trump was in office. When adjusting for population gains, nearly 2 million more Americans are on the sidelines today than they were during the previous Administration.
- Wages Are Not Keeping up with Biden’s Inflation Crisis. Real wages are down over 5 percent since President Biden entered the Oval Office.
- Inflation Still Shows No Signs of Slowing Down. Americans are still feeling the sting of this inflation crisis—prices are up 15.3 percent under Biden. Inflation remains over three times higher than just a couple years ago.
The Bottom Line: A closer look at the May jobs report shows a deteriorating labor market. It is misleading at best for the President to claim his Administration is setting records with his economic agenda.
