Trump’s firing of the chief of BLS is monumental. This action has raised tremendous alarm over the perceived integrity and transparency of economic data in the United States. The agency’s dismissal comes on the heels of a deeply concerning BLS report released earlier this year. This report painted a disturbing picture of the initial response rates to BLS surveys, raising serious questions about the accuracy of the agency’s results.
The BLS did acknowledge in that report that there are ways it can do better in terms of data collection. It really drove home a need to be more transparent about its underlying assumptions. In a controversial move, the agency has reduced its collection of price information, which many believe could further compromise the quality of economic indicators.
Second, the BLS pulled a surprise by revising downward job numbers significantly. They changed the story on us that last year’s job growth was much worse than we had originally calculated. This change faced intense backlash, resulting in an inquiry from the Labor Department’s office of inspector general. That probe grew directly out of the changes to the job report. It was coincident with BLS’s decision to curb collecting price information.
Given all this chaos, President Trump appointed new EJ Antoni to be the new commissioner of BLS. Antoni, legendary for his bloodthirsty, hyper-partisan, Trump-suck-up analysis, was immediately blasted by Democrats and economists alike. They are concerned that his appointment could continue the trend of politicizing BLS economic data. Critics have pointed out that this nomination sets a dangerous precedent that destroys the independence of the BLS and endangers the objectivity of its reports.
The Trump administration is still committed to quality improvement guidance for BLS’s reports. Yet they are just as committed to shaking things up in that office, as evidenced by the fearmongering. Administration officials will tell you that these changes are necessary. Better yet, they will help make labor statistics more accurate, timely, and relevant within the context of our current rapidly evolving economic landscape.
William Wiatrowski has been serving as the BLS acting commissioner since January 2019. After the Labor Department’s inspector general announced her investigation, her office quickly moved to cut off the enforcement office’s authority. They wrote Wiatrowski a specific letter outlining the basis for their inquiry into the agency’s recent activity.
Nevertheless, as these developments continue to unfold, stakeholders alarmed by efforts to inject political influence over important economic data remain on edge. If enacted, these changes would have tremendous impact. They could undermine future public trust in economic indicators and policies.