Job growth rose far more than expected in January despite surging omicron cases that seemingly sent millions of workers to the sidelines, the Labor Department reported Friday. Nonfarm payrolls surged by 467,000 for the month, while the unemployment rate edged higher to 4%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The Dow Jones estimate was for payroll growth of 150,000 and a 3.9% unemployment rate. Along with the big upside surprise for January, massive revisions sent previous months considerably higher. December, which initially was reported as a gain of 199,000, went up to 510,000. November surged to 647,000 from the previously reported 249,000. For the two months alone, the initial counts were revised up by 709,000. The revisions came as part of the annual adjustments from the BLS that saw sizeable changes for many of the months in 2021. Those changes brought the 2021 total to 6.665 million, easily the biggest single-year gain in U.S. history.
While the Senate is in recess today, this morning the House voted to pass the America COMPETES Act, a bill that aims to increase U.S. competitiveness with China and to address the country’s shortage of semiconductors by strengthening the country’s supply chain. The legislation was approved on a 222-210 vote. One Republican, Representative Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, voted for the bill. Representative Stephanie Murphy of Florida was the only Democrat to vote against it. The bill’s Senate counterpart, the US Innovation and Competition Act of 2021, passed with the support of 19 Republican Senators in June. Now that the House version of the legislation passed, the differences between the two bills will be reconciled by a conference committee. The bill includes $52 billion to support domestic manufacturing and research of semiconductors, the chips that are used in electronic devices and have faced shortages throughout the pandemic, contributing to delays and increased costs. The bill also authorizes $45 billion to strengthen the supply chain. It establishes a new directive for Science and Engineering Solutions and provides additional funding for the National Science Foundation, but less than the amount proposed in the Senate version.
The Senate will reconvene at 3:00 P.M. on Monday February 7th and is expected to take up the nomination of Ebony M. Scott to be an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia and the nomination of Donald Walker Tunnage to be an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.
The House will reconvene for votes at 6:30 P.M. on Monday, February 7th. Next week, the House is expected to consider H.R. 4445, the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act, which would end forced arbitration in cases relating to sexual assault and harassment, providing survivors with legal recourse to seek justice in court against their assailants, the House will consider H.R. 3485, the Global Respect Act, which furthers our nation’s commitment to LGBTQ rights around the world by sanctioning foreign individuals found to be complicit in violating the human rights of LGBTQ people, and the House will also consider H.R. 3076, the Postal Service Reform Act. This bipartisan bill would strengthen the financial position of the United States Postal Service and ensure it continues to successfully carry out its mandate to deliver mail to every household and business in the United States. Finally, the House is expected to begin work on FY2022 appropriations, likely an omnibus bill.
Adam S. Olsen, Washington, D.C.
