The following is an official statement from Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa:
“Today we learned that the U.S. economy is shrinking due to a fall in government spending. That should tell us that government austerity is not just wrong, it’s bad economic policy.
“The Bureau of Economic Affairs’ announcement that GDP fell by 0.1 percent reinforces our message that we need jobs, not cuts – especially to Social Security, Medicare and education.
“Teamsters around the country are participating in actions today to demand that big corporations and the richest 2 percent pay their fair share of taxes. I hope extremists in Congress pay attention to their message that Americans need jobs, not cuts.
“Another reason for the decline in GDP is a fall in U.S. exports, the legacy of NAFTA, CAFTA and PNTR. I hope Congress finally wakes up to the destruction caused by these job-killing trade deals.â€
Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.4 million hardworking men and women throughout the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. Visit www.teamster.org for more information.