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On Monday, President Biden ordered the US Labor Department to ensure that unemployed Americans cannot draw enhanced federal jobless benefits if they turn down a suitable job offer. He also rejected claims by Republicans that his weekly unemployment bonus is undermining efforts to get millions of Americans back to work. Biden also made it clear that he expects workers to return to jobs if they are available. He also defended his signature economic policy effort and blamed corporate America for not doing more to entice people to go back to work. President Biden informed reporters at the White House and said that child care constraints, school closures, and fears of contracting the coronavirus had hindered job creation last month and he challenged companies to help workers gain access to vaccines and to raise their pay.

President Biden said, “The last Congress before I became president, gave businesses over $1.4 trillion in Covid relief. Congress may have approved that money, but let’s be clear: The money came from the American people, and it went from the American people to American businesses, many of the big businesses, to help them get through this pandemic and keep their doors open. My expectation is that, as our economy comes back, these companies will provide fair wages and safe work environments. They’ll find plenty of workers, and we’re all going to come out of this together better than before”. He also promised that more relief was working its way into the economy through measures created by the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan and signed into law in March.

The American Rescue Plan includes help for child care providers and aid for state and local governments. His defense of the stimulus funds and his administration’s handling of the economy came as he tried to win support for even more federal spending, including a $2.3 trillion jobs proposal centered on physical infrastructure. Point to be noted that Republicans have already criticized President Biden for the disappointing job numbers and have suggested he is wreaking havoc with the economic recovery. They blamed a provision in his rescue plan that extended a $300-per-week federal supplement for unemployed Americans. They said those benefits are depressing hiring by discouraging Americans from returning to work. On Monday, Biden said his administration would make clear that any worker who turned down a suitable job offer would lose access to unemployment benefits.