Washington, D.C.—SEIU International President Mary Kay Henry released the following statement in response to the latest jobs report showing the economy added only 117,000 jobs in July:

“As another month of dismal job growth passes and worldwide market panic intensifies, politicians in Washington continue to act as spectators to our great nation's economic freefall.

“We can and must do better. We owe it to the brave men and women who fought for and built our country, and to future generations to do what Americans do best: tackle hard problems head on and develop innovative solutions to move our country forward.

“We are the country that put our faith in the American value of hard work to get through the Great Depression and rebuild Europe after World War II, we are the country that put a man on the moon when no one thought it could be done, and we are the country that revived an American auto industry that was on the brink of extinction.

“Now it is time to tap into that same spirit to restore jobs to our communities and pride in the American value of hard work and innovation. It is time to empower our nurses to heal, our teachers to teach, our security officers to protect and our children to realize their own dreams and true potential.

“Politicians in Washington should listen closely to the demands of the American people while they are back in their districts. Instead of killing jobs with more cuts, we need politicians to end the tax giveaways and loopholes for CEOs and big corporations – and use that money to invest in jobs that allow our families to realize our own, new American Dream."

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