"Globalization Helps To Create Better Opportunities For Workers "

March 5, 2007

Mr. Speaker, the increasingly global nature of our economy is one of the most defining issues of our time.  The growing connectedness of the world’s consumers, producers, workers and investors is having an impact on virtually every aspect of our lives.  And with all the rapid change that globalization is bringing about, it is very natural for us to ask ourselves the question, “Have these changes been for the better?”  We want to know if globalization is improving our lives, or making them worse. 

One of the biggest concerns that we have when we look at this question is the issue of income inequality.  We read reports of massive executive salaries and compare them to the circumstances of America’s middle class and the concerns that working families have.  And we inevitably wonder if the system is fair. 

I recently spoke here on the House floor about this very question.  The critical issue is not whether those at the top are becoming more prosperous.  The critical issue is whether everyone – particularly those at the bottom – is becoming more prosperous.

 We looked at the issue of wages and saw that they are growing for all workers.  But when we looked deeper, we saw that the outlook is even more positive.  The purchasing power of working families is increased by lower taxes and greater access to low-cost goods through trade.  This growing purchasing power, along with rising wages, is increasing the standard of living for all Americans, with the greatest positive impact for those at the bottom of the economic ladder. 

Today I want to look at another issue that helps to answer the question of whether quality of life is improving for everyone.  That is the issue of jobs.  More specifically, new job creation and the quality of those new jobs.  Jobs are perhaps the most critical issue in determining standard of living.  Does everyone who wants a job have one?  Does that job provide the opportunity to prosper and improve one’s quality of life? 

Just as we saw with wages, the numbers demonstrate a very positive outlook for workers.  Unemployment is at 4.6% -- a rate that is exceptionally low. 

We have had 16 straight months of unemployment at 5% or less.  At the same time, the workforce has been rapidly expanding.  Our economy has created nearly 7.5 million new jobs in the last three and a half years.  There are 146 million working Americans today, more than at any other time in our history.  The jobs outlook in the U.S. today is unquestionably good. 

But just like with wages, we see an even fuller, better picture when we dig a little deeper.  Average monthly hires last year were nearly 5 million, the highest rate ever since that data has been collected.  Of those 5 million, the share of workers who left their old job voluntarily for new work was also the highest ever at 58.3%.  This means that workers are not just finding jobs, they’re finding better and better opportunities. 

Anyone who has been stuck in a dead-end job knows that this is a huge quality of life issue.  Having a job is essential to providing for a family, and any job can serve as a starting point to success.  But having a good job that offers new opportunities to prosper is essential to a growing standard of living. 

The fact that we’re seeing 5 million new hires every month demonstrates a great deal of churn and dynamism in our workforce.  And we know that change is not always easy.  But the rapidly growing number of workers who are voluntarily leaving their old jobs demonstrates that new and better opportunities are being created.  It demonstrates the increased confidence in our workforce that comes with growing prosperity and the prospect of a better life. 

And it also helps us to answer the question of whether the standard of living is improving for everyone – not just those at the very top of the economic ladder.  New jobs and new opportunities are helping to make all of us more prosperous.  I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to continue to pursue the pro-growth policies – including an embrace of America’s global economic leadership – that have brought about this dynamic workforce where everyone is upwardly mobile.