Leader Heard: Ohio's Potential Still Stunted by Misplaced Priorities

The state jobs report for May was released today, highlighting the loss of 14,000 Ohioans from the workforce and 10,700 nonagricultural jobs in state-targeted industrial sectors last month, despite the unemployment rate ticking down to 5.5 percent from 5.7 percent in April. On Thursday, the U.S. Labor Department reported that Ohio’s job creation rate for the fourth quarter of 2013 was below the national average again, at 1.4 percent compared to 1.8 percent nationwide. The Labor Department report also suggested that Ohio’s wages have continued to fall since the second quarter 2013. In response, House Democratic Leader Tracy Maxwell Heard (D-Columbus) released the following statement:

“Once again, Ohio’s jobs numbers and economic indicators show that our state isn’t living up to its potential. When Gov. Kasich signed the MBR this month, it underscored this administration’s misplaced priorities and obsession with giving folks at the very top more tax breaks while our economy continues to underperform and the strength of our working and middle class gets weaker.

“We all want a rosy jobs report, but in order to accomplish that we must first start with the actual facts. There are 14,000 more people left behind and the Governor is choosing not to acknowledge them. The likelihood of support for these Ohioans from this administration is nil. Ohioans deserve better. Acknowledging their existence would be a good start.”