01.27.2017

NEW YORK – Transcripts from a Federal Open Market Committee meeting in 2011, recently released after a traditional five-year waiting period, revealed a callous lack of understanding of the factors behind unemployment. 

In April 2011, when unemployment stood at 9 percent, Richmond Federal Reserve President Jeffrey Lacker, was quoted as saying, "Several firms told us of difficulty finding adequate workers, because they preferred to collect unemployment benefits of can't pass drug tests."

For the last few years, the Fed Up campaign has urged the Federal Reserve to appoint more diverse candidates to its leadership ranks, and these insensitive remarks provide tangible evidence of the need for leaders who are not just white and male.

Jordan Haedtler, deputy campaign manager of Fed Up, said, "This callous dismissal of unemployment at a time when one out of 10 workers was unemployed shows how completely out of touch President Lacker was with the communities most affected by the crisis."

He continued: "I can't think of a more perfect example of why we need a more diverse, publicly representative Federal Reserve. There has never been a Black or Latino Reserve Bank president in the Fed's history. Federal Reserve officials are disproportionately white, male, and from corporate and financial backgrounds. It is no surprise that they evidently fail to engage in communities where unemployment and low wages are chronic problems."

The Intercept reported on the recently released transcripts here.

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www.populardemocracy.org 
The Center for Popular Democracy promotes equity, opportunity, and a dynamic democracy in partnership with innovative base-building organizations, organizing networks and alliances, and progressive unions across the country. CPD builds the strength and capacity of democratic organizations to envision and advance a pro-worker, pro-immigrant, racial justice agenda.

www.whatrecovery.org  
Fed Up is a coalition of community organizations and labor unions across the country calling on the Federal Reserve to reform its governance and adopt policies that build a strong economy for the American public. The Fed can keep interest rates low, give the economy a fair chance to recover, and prioritize genuine full employment and rising wages for all communities.

Contact: Anita Jain, ajain@populardemocracy.org, 347-636-9761