Theme:– Operation J.U.M.P. For Jobs, Justice & Unsung Dreams

There’s lots of buzz in Washington these days. Some are gearing-up for the Cherry Blossoms bloom. Others are hoping that unemployment benefits return for the long-term jobless. The Senate has taken up a bill, the House, not sure. Maybe that’s why Nancy Pelosi raised eyebrows with her recent statements.

The Jobs Report made headlines but Pelosi went one-up on the news. The report shows that private sector employment has surpassed pre-recession levels. Pelosi pinned the tail on the Bush Administration past. While the private sector numbers sound like progress, the unemployment rate was unchanged.

Bloomberg and the Economic Policy Institute made some notes. EPI suggests that the private sector has a shortfall of 5 to 6 million jobs, meaning economic activity hiring has not kept pace with newly added workers to the job market. Bloomberg shows that the long-term jobless are just as good a hire as anyone.

So, there’re social gaps in what could have been. When you study some of the other facts you see almost double the national average in unemployment for one demographic and high underemployment across the board. This calls for an Affirmative Jobs Action program. This calls for Operation J.U.M.P.

You’ve heard of ACA as in the Affordable Care Act. Pelosi might say it achieved its rollout goal. Now we must shift our attention to Affirmative Jobs Action (AJA). If we approach the long-term jobless and AJA with the same gusto as ACA, we’ll make millions of people happier like those who now have healthcare.

Footnote: Operation J.U.M.P. is like an Affirmative Jobs Action program that’s focused on engaging policy makers, incentivizing business leaders and empowering 21^st century workers for a comeback in the job market.