Middle Class -- Obama's Got Your Back

You have to hand it to Barack Obama. He is a guy always willing to speak up, stand up and grow the middle class.

President Obama believes this is a make or break moment for the middle class and those trying to reach it, and he has laid out a blueprint for an economy that's built to last - an economy built on American manufacturing, American energy, skills for American workers, and a renewal of American values.

Reflecting Obama's policies and commitment to the middle class, just this year, the Obama economy has added one a quarter million new private sector jobs. The White House likes the trend. Earlier this month, Obama's Council of Economic Advisors bragged,

While more work remains to be done, today’s employment report provides further confirmation that the U.S. economy is continuing to recover from the worst downturn since the Great Depression. It is critical that we remain focused on pursuing policies to speed job creation and expand the middle class, as we continue to dig our way out of the deep hole that was caused by the severe recession that began in December 2007.

Today’s report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) indicates that private sector businesses added 202,000 jobs last month (see first chart below). Total non-farm payroll employment rose by 195,000 jobs in June. The economy has now added private sector jobs for 40 consecutive months, and a total of 7.2 million jobs has been added over that period. In spite of monthly volatility, over the past three years the pace of job growth has increased each year (see second chart below). So far this year, 1.23 million private sector jobs have been added.

How's Obama getting it done? Job splitting is a good term for it.

For the entire U.S. workforce, employers have added far more part-time employees in 2013—averaging 93,000 a month, seasonally adjusted—than full-time workers, which have averaged 22,000.

That's right, Obama is bolstering the middle class by adding about four part time jobs for every full time job, reminiscent of Obama's run in with Joe the Plumber and commitment to sharing the wealth.

The Washington Post has recognized the role Obamacare plays  in parsing jobs.

The health care law requires companies with 50 or more employees to provide affordable insurance coverage to workers. For part-time employees, who work fewer than 30 hours, the story is different: A company does not get penalized for not providing health insurance coverage.

The motivation to move even more workers into part-time positions is relatively straightforward. Employers can dodge the requirement to purchase health benefits and not pay a fine to the federal government. All of a sudden, they’re off the hook for an insurance policy that, on average, costs $9,562 to provide — and they don’t have to pay a fine.

One, two, three, let's all say it together now....