(Adds Yellen remarks)

By Trevor Hunnicutt and Jonnelle Marte

WASHINGTON, Feb 5 (Reuters) - After lackluster jobs datashowed the U.S. labor market recovery is stalling, President JoeBiden and his economic team on Friday hammered home the samemessage in meetings, interviews and television appearances: It'stime to put more money into the economy.

Meeting with top Democrats from the U.S. House ofRepresentatives at the White House, Biden said the United Stateswould not return to full employment at the current pace of jobcreation for 10 years, underscoring the need for lawmakers toact on his $1.9 trillion pandemic-related aid proposal.

"Our economy is still in trouble," Biden told reportersafter the meeting. "Some in Congress think we did enough -others think we can do little or nothing - that’s not what Isee."

Biden's stimulus proposal, which would come on top of about$4 trillion in aid passed by Congress last year, has metresistance mostly from Republican lawmakers who have expressedconcerns about the swelling national debt.

But the Democratic president pushed back on Friday, sayingwhat Republicans have proposed instead would not deliver enoughhelp to the economy.

"It’s people’s lives. Real-life people are hurting and wecan fix it," Biden said earlier. "When we help them we are alsohelping our competitive capacity," he said.

Biden also urged lawmakers to avoid a stimulus package thatwas too small to meet the urgent needs of the American people,millions of whom remain without jobs nearly a year after theonset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Democratic-controlled House passed a budget outline onFriday that will allow Biden's relief package to go throughCongress without Republican support in the coming weeks. TheSenate, which is evenly split between the two parties, approvedit in a pre-dawn vote, with Vice President Kamala Harris castingthe tie-breaking vote.

COSTS OF INACTION

Biden's top economic advisers also pushed for moregovernment aid on Friday, stressing the need to reach women,low-wage workers and minorities who are disproportionatelyaffected by job losses. The U.S. economy is still about 10million jobs short of where it was before the pandemic.

"The idea that we should pare back now, out of a future fearthat maybe we might possibly do too much, just doesn't seemconsistent with the economic evidence we have in front of us,"Heather Boushey, a member of the White House's Council ofEconomic Advisers, said in an interview with Reuters. "The costof inaction far outweighs the costs of perhaps doing a littlebit too much."

U.S. employment growth rebounded less than expected inJanuary, with only 49,000 positions added, and job losses inDecember were worse than initially thought.

Jared Bernstein, who is also a member of the Council ofEconomic Advisers, said in a news briefing at the White Housethat the price tag for Biden's rescue plan was not too big.

"Today's (employment) report is yet another reminder thatour economy is still climbing out of a hole deeper than that ofthe Great Recession and needs additional relief," Bernstein saidafter noting that the pandemic has led to a rise in long-termunemployment and that women and people of color weredisproportionately affected by job losses.

With pandemic-related unemployment benefits set to expire onMarch 14, further action by Congress is needed soon, he said.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and Harris spoke during avirtual even with the Black Chambers of Commerce about theimportance of sending aid to Black workers and minority-ownedbusinesses disproportionately affected by the crisis.

"We've seen early data that suggest Black workers will bethe last rehired when the economy opens back up," Yellen said,adding that small businesses need guidance and technicalassistance, as well as grant money.(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt and Jonnelle Marte; Editing byPaul Simao and Cynthia Osterman)