Read the rest of this article at BE Next…

The nation’s unemployment rate, fell to 9.7% in May from 9.9% in April, due in part to the creation of 431,000 jobs, the Labor Department reported Friday. The government’s hiring of 411,000 temporary Census count workers fueled much of that boost.

African Americans had reason to cheer the latest report on news that the unemployment rate for blacks dropped one percentage point from 16.5% to 15.5%. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis said she was pleased that the African American jobless rate had lowered, but couldn’t say unequivocally if it was because of the temporary Census jobs or a long-awaited move in the right direction of the economy.

“It’s hard to say because I don’t have all of that data, but I also was pleased to see it did tick down,” she said during a conference call, adding that black unemployment figures would improve even more once Congress passes a bill that would provide $1.2 billion for a summer youth employment program. The House passed its version of the measure before leaving for the Memorial Day recess; a Senate vote is expected to take place when lawmakers return to Washington on June 8. The bill also would extend unemployment benefits and COBRA.

Healthcare employment was little changed in May; however, over the prior 12 months, healthcare employment had increased by an average of 20,000 per month.  Manufacturing employment increased by 29,000 over the month and temporary help services added 31,000 jobs over the month.

Black Lawmakers Seek to Limit Reach of Ethics Office
Before slipping out of town for the Memorial Day recess, a group of 20 Congressional Black Caucus members, led by Rep. Marcia Fudge (D-Ohio), very quietly introduced a resolution (H. R. 1416) to limit the powers of the Office of Congressional Ethics. The measure would prohibit OCE from publicizing an ethics referral before there has been a finding of any violation and also would require a sworn complaint from a citizen claiming personal knowledge of an alleged wrongdoing.

It is unlikely that the bill will win much other support and may even ruffle some feathers.

But according to University of Maryland political scientist Ronald Walters, there is a perception that the panel has shown bias against the black lawmakers.

Five CBC members were recently investigated by the panel for violating House rules by participating in a junket to the Caribbean that was financed by corporate sponsors. Rep. Charles Rangel (D-New York) was the only one to receive admonishment. Citing the late Pennsylvania Rep. John Murtha, a close Pelosi ally, who was exonerated of what Walters described as “very egregious” charges, he said, “When the only members who are most vulnerable appear to be African American members, there’s something wrong with the process.”

The watchdog was created by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California) to reassure taxpayers that the Democratic-controlled Congress would take ethics violations seriously and provide greater transparency. Two black lawmakers, Rep. G.K. Butterfield (D-North Carolina) and Rep. Robert Scott (D-Virginia), sit on the independent, citizen-run panel. OCE doesn’t have the power to sanction lawmakers but acts as an advisory board to the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct.

“The [OCE] was created to provide more transparency in the House of Representatives. It was a commendable goal. We must now perfect its processes to ensure that those aims are achieved in a manner consistent with America’s spirit of justice. The processes must be fair to all people involved,” Fudge said in a statement issued this week by her office. She also accused the OCE of acting as “accuser, judge and jury.”

Skeptics may question both the wisdom and the temerity of introducing such a measure, and though Waters believes it has merit—he’s also pretty certain that it also won’t go anywhere.

White House Hosts Summit on Black Men and AIDS

The White House held a summit Wednesday on the dire impact that AIDS has had on African American men, and officials said incidences of the disease may even be on the rise.

According to CDC figures, black men bear the greatest burden of HIV infection and account for nearly two-thirds of all estimated HIV infections in the black community. Their HIV diagnosis rate in 2006 was the highest of any group—more than seven times that for white males and twice the rate for Hispanic males and black females. In fact, the number of people with HIV in some of the nation’s black communities is comparable to the rate highly impacted African countries.

Summit participants included policymakers, community and religious leaders, doctors and key members of the Obama administration. The event was part of a series of meetings the White House conducted in the past several months to explore different aspects of the HIV/AIDS issue. The administration will soon release its national HIV/AIDS strategy to decrease the incidence of the disease and improve care.

Click here to view the summit.

What Washington Will be Talking About Next Week

Not surprisingly, jobs will be one of the hottest topics as the House anticipates whether the Senate will follow its lead by voting on and pass a version of the American Jobs and Closing Tax Loopholes Act. The bill includes $1.2 billion for youth summer employment, and extends unemployment benefits and small business loan programs

On June 10, the House Ways and Means Committee’s Income Security and Family Support panel will hold a hearing on policy solutions to address long-term employment.

African American Unemployment Rate Climbed in March

The March jobs report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics today shows that the economy is in a slow, but certain recovery. But while 162,000 jobs were added to the nation’s payrolls, the report didn’t bring any good news for African Americans. The unemployment rate for blacks rose from 15.8% to 16.2%. Overall, unemployment held steady at 9.7%.

Thomas Boston, a Georgia Tech economics professor who sits on the BE Board of Economists, attributes the increase to blacks being stuck in the old “first fired, last hired” syndrome, “that we historically haven’t been able to overcome.” In addition, a large percentage of firms are hiring or rehiring people to work only part-time and also becoming more efficient.

Congressional Black Caucus Chairwoman Rep. Barbara Lee (D-California) said that black unemployment figures are unacceptably high and “undergird the continued importance for legislation to directly create more jobs for unemployed Americans, particularly the chronically unemployed.”

Boston explained that the jobless number remained the same because almost 400,000 people returned to the labor market and either got a job or are actively seeking one. According to him, that’s good news.

The White House cheered the numbers, pointing out that their policies to boost the economy are working.

“Even after adjusting for the 48,000 temporary Census workers hired and a rebound effect from the February snowstorms, this number suggests an increase in underlying payroll employment,” said Christina Romer, who chairs the Council of Economic Advisors.

Before the report came out, critics — including Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele – were lining up to predict that any gains would be due to temporary workers hired to help conduct the 2010 Census. After the numbers were released Steele said “it is unacceptable for President [Barack] Obama to declare economic success when unemployment remains at 9.7% and a large portion of the job growth came from temporary boost in government employment.”

The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks and over) increased by 414,000 over the month to 6.5 million. In March, 44.1% of unemployed persons were jobless for 27 weeks or more. Temporary help services added 40,000 jobs in March. Since September 2009, temporary help services employment has risen by 313,000.

Employment in healthcare continued to increase in March, with the largest gains occurring in ambulatory healthcare services and in nursing and residential care facilities.

Healthcare Bill Makes College More Affordable

Until this week, when President Barack Obama for a second time signed into law a healthcare reform bill, little notice had been given to a significant education reform tucked into the bill that will expand Pell Grant funding and help make loan repayment more manageable.

In addition to overhauling heathcare in the U.S., the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act will also invest $2.255 billion in HBCUs and other predominately black and minority-serving institutions.

“The success of these institutions is not only vital to the success of African Americans, but it is also vital to the success of all Americans,” said John Wilson, executive director of the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities. He added that the administration wants to ensure that these institutions can contribute to Obama’s goal that the United States lead the world in producing college graduates by 2020.

Each year, more than 8 million people use Pell Grants to help pay for college. The bill invests more than $40 billion in the program to ensure that all eligible students will receive an award and that the amount awarded keeps pace with both inflation and the rising cost of college. It is estimated that by the 2020-2021 academic year, more than 820,000 additional grants will be awarded. Of that number approximately 200,000 will go to African Americans.

The bill also ensures that borrowers can afford their student loan payments by expanding the existing income-based student loan repayment program. New borrowers who assume loans after July 1, 2014, will be able to cap their student loan repayments at 10 percent of their discretionary income and, if they keep up with their payments, will have the balance forgiven after 20 years.

“All of these reforms are paid for with savings that were gained by reforming our nation’s student lending program,” said Melody Barnes, director of the White House Domestic Policy Council. “By removing the banks as middlemen and eliminating millions of dollars in annual subsidies, we’re ale to ensure that students have a more competitive and robust program for entering colleges, completing them and going onto jobs not burdened so heavily by additional loans.”

TSA Nominee No. 2 Withdraws

The Obama administration has lost yet another nominee to head the Transportation Security Administration. Army Maj. Gen. Robert Harding withdrew from consideration earlier last week after questions arose about a contract his company had with the government to provide interrogators in Iraq.

When the contract ended in 2004, Harding Security Associates sought more money from the early termination of the contract than the Defense Department said it was entitled to get. The firm evenutally refunded $1.8 million of that money in a 2008 settlement with the Defense Intelligence Agency, according to the Associated Press.

The agency continues to move forward, however. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano announced today that the TSA will revamp security measures for international airlines that fly into the U.S., including its ability to detect vulnerabilities.

But moonlighting can be taxing — both mentally and physically. And juggling the extra work load could put your career at risk. So before looking in the want-ads, be sure to be prepared.

First, read your employee handbook and check with your employer. Some companies frown upon moonlighting, especially if the part-time position is for a competitor or in the same industry.

To secure for part-time work, “network with colleagues through professional and trade associations,” says certified career and workforce development consultant Anita Davis-DeFoe, president of the Afia Planning and Development Corp.

Tawana CB Wood, owner of resume-writing firm TCB Solutions, a resume-writing firm, agrees.

“Most employers prefer to hire someone through a referral, especially now, when employers are seeing ten times more resumes and applications than they did in the past,” adds Wood, who also suggests using online job searches. “Harness the power of the Internet, and definitely let your (social) networks know you are looking for a part-time opportunity.”

Experts say you should never to job hunt while you are at work. “You do not want to jeopardize your primary source of income for extra cash,” says Wood.  Look for a second job near your current place of employment to among increased commuting time.

If your industry is tightening its belt or your employer forbids part-time work in your present field, use a part-time job opportunity to learn about a new industry. This will also make you more valuable in today’s competitive marketplace.

Do some research on various industries to see which are growing. Also, check out companies who have slashed their workforce. They may be hiring part timers or outside consultants.

“Full-time professionals should conduct ongoing environment scanning, mentally evaluating the state of the organization development the field to expertise. Look to deficiencies gaps in problematic, tactual, or operational capacities. These  gaps can offer potential moonlighting or entrepreneurial opportunities,” says Davis-DeFoe.

“Many companies are looking to outsource functions such as accounting, administrative assistance, research, website design, medical billing, etc.,” Wood says.  A great source to find consulting jobs is Elance.com.

Once you’ve found the perfect second job, organize, organize, organize. Leave a two-hour span between jobs, if possible, just in case you have to work late at your full-time job. ” Time management will be critical as you seek to manage multiple deadlines in addition to family, church or other commitments,” says Davis-DeFoe.  Don’t overcommit or overschedule.

Schedule personal time for yourself, even if it’s just one night a week, and be sure to continue your fitness regime, experts say. The added stress combined with less sleep could lead to an unhealthy body. Make room for family and friends so not to neglect important relationships. Make sure you’re off at least one night and one full day each week.

Always keep your full-time job a priority. “Do not miss deadlines at work and definitely do not conduct tasks associated with your second job on your day job,” warns Davis-DeFoe.

Figure out what will your tax liability will become. Having a second job that pushes you into a higher tax bracket may not be worth your time. Make sure too that your second employer is withholding enough in federal taxes each week.

Consider holding your part-time gig for a limited period. “Moonlighting is an excellent way to learn new skills, obtain experience in a new industry, or achieve a financial goal and the second job is worked for a short time,” says Davis. Set earnings goal to use your extra cash for something such as paying off a credit card debt or establishing a savings. Extended moonlighting tends to cause personal, physical and career stress as managing these multiple demands is challenging,” says Davis-DeFoe says. Know when it’s time to cash that last second paycheck and quit.

WEB RESOURCES

On-ramps.com

Flexibleresources.com

Flexworkconnection.com

Elance.com.