[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 38 (Tuesday, March 6, 2007)]
[House]
[Page H2211]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    THE GLOBAL NATURE OF OUR ECONOMY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, as we clearly saw last week with the sharp 
decline in our stock market following a major drop in the Chinese 
market, 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.
  Mr. Speaker, one of the biggest concerns that we have when we look at 
this question is the issue of income inequality, something that many 
people are talking about. 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 in fact fair. I recently spoke here on this 
issue, on this very question.
  The critical issue is not, Mr. Speaker, whether those at the top are 
becoming more prosperous; the critical issue is whether everyone is 
becoming more prosperous, particularly those who are at the bottom of 
the economic ladder.
  We looked at the issue of wages and saw that they are growing for all 
workers. But when we looked even 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 
international 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 who are just beginning to move up 
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, Mr. Speaker. More specifically, new job creation, 
and the quality of those new jobs.
  Jobs are perhaps the most critical issue in determining standards of 
living. Does everyone who wants a job have a job? 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 percent, a rate that is exceptionally 
low. Mr. Speaker, in fact, we have had 16 straight months of 
unemployment at 5 percent or less. At the same time, the workforce has 
been rapidly expanding. Our economy has created nearly 7\1/2\ million 
new jobs in the last 3\1/2\ years. There are 146 million Americans 
working today, more than at any time in our Nation's history. The jobs 
outlook in the United States continues to be very, very good.
  But just like with wages, we see an even fuller picture, a better 
picture when we dig just a little deeper. Average monthly hires last 
year were nearly 5 million, the highest rate ever since data have been 
collected. Of those 5 million, the share of workers who left their old 
job voluntarily for new work was also at the highest level. 58.3 
percent made that move. This means that workers are not just finding 
jobs, they are finding better jobs, 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 are seeing 5 million new hires every month 
demonstrates a great deal of churn and dynamism in our workforce, and 
we know that 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, Mr. Speaker, the increased confidence in our 
workforce that comes with growing prosperity and the prospect of a 
better life. And it also helps to answer the question of whether the 
standard of living is improving for everyone, not just those who are at 
the top of the economic lead ladder.

                              {time}  1715

  New jobs and new opportunities are helping to make all of us more 
prosperous.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to 
continue to pursue pro-growth economic policies, including an embrace 
of America's global leadership role. Those policies have brought about 
this dynamic work force, where everyone is upwardly mobile.

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