Obama calls for 'urgent' resolve after job loss figures

AFP/Getty Images/File – President-elect Barack Obama, seen here on December 03, 2008, called for an "urgent" effort

WASHINGTON (AFP) – President-elect Barack Obama on Friday called for an "urgent" effort to put people back to work and to stimulate the US economy after the release of the worst job loss figures in 34 years. "There are not quick or easy fixes to this crisis, which has been many years in the making, and it's likely to get worse before it gets better," Obama warned in a statement. "But now is the time to respond with urgent resolve to put people back to work and get our economy moving again," Obama said. "The 533,000 jobs lost last month, the worst job loss in 34 years, is more than a dramatic reflection of the growing economic crisis we face.

"Each of those lost jobs represents a personal crisis for a family somewhere in America."
Obama vowed to push forward his economic recovery plan which he says will create at least 2.5 million more jobs over two years while shoring up the flow of credit.

The president-elect, who takes office on January 20, also said the "painful crisis" offered an opportunity to transform the US economy to unleash infrastructure programs to modernize schools, rebuild roads and push energy reform. Obama issued his statement after the release of stunning new Labor Department figures which showed the US economy lost a stunning 533,000 jobs in November, sending the unemployment rate to a 15-year high of 6.7 percent.

The monthly report on non-farm payrolls, seen as one of the best indicators of economic momentum, highlighted the severe retrenchment by companies in the face of a struggling economy and tight credit. The number of job losses was much higher than the 325,000 expected by private