Washington, D.C. – The top Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee Kevin Brady (R-TX) released the following statement in response to the Labor Department’s May jobs report:

“With more jobs added and beating expectations, it’s my hope that we have passed the trough of the pandemic’s damage and we will continue to improve as America’s economy reopens. 

“Our top economic priority must be to ensure the 41 million Americans who lost their jobs temporarily don’t lose them permanently. Congress must act to help Main Street businesses rebuild their workforce quickly by redesigning the CARES Act emergency unemployment benefit so it doesn’t continue to act as a barrier to getting people back to work.

“If we don’t reconnect workers to available jobs, more businesses will fail, the economic recovery will be slower, and the painful recession will last longer. That’s why I’ve introduced the Return-to-Work Bonus, that transforms emergency unemployment benefits into a $1,200 bonus for the jobless to return to work.

“Without this crucial change, in some states nearly three out of four jobless are being paid more on unemployment than their previous wages at work. This makes it nearly impossible for local businesses to hire — which is unhealthy for workers, businesses, and America.”