国际英语新闻：Obama administration vows to break cycle of job loss

WASHINGTON, March 6 (Xinhua) -- The Obama administration vowed Friday to do what is necessary to break the cycle of job loss.

    "We will continue to do whatever is necessary to break the destructive cycle of job loss in this country and put Americans back to work," Labor Secretary Hilda Solis said in a statement.

    Earlier Friday, the Labor Department reported that the nation's unemployment rate jumped to 8.1 percent, the highest level since late 1983, as employers slashed 651,000 jobs in February.

    "This data does not just represent abstract statistics. Rather it illustrates the struggles of millions of Americans who do not know how they will raise their families, or pay their bills and mortgages," Solis said.

    The secretary said that the administration recognized that solving the economic crisis would not be easy and would not happen overnight, but "the nation has both the resources and the will to meet this challenge and emerge stronger and more prosperous than before."

    Addressing a graduating class of new police officers in Ohio, U.S. President Barack Obama said Friday that the February job numbers underscored the importance of his economic stimulus package passed last month by Congress.

    The nation has met every challenge with bold action and big ideas and "that's what fueled a shared and lasting prosperity," he said.

    Since the start of the recession in December 2007, payroll employment has declined by 4.4 million jobs, with more than half occurring in the last four months.