Walker claims jobs numbers are better than first thought - WKOW 27: Madison, WI Breaking News, Weather and Sports

MADISON (WKOW) -- Governor Scott Walker says jobs numbers for the last three months of 2011 are more positive than previously reported.

He issued new figures Wednesday, less than three weeks before voters decide whether he should stay in office. Walker faces Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett in a recall election June 5th.

The Walker administration say these numbers show a gain of more than 23,000 jobs between December 2010, the month before Walker took office, and December 2011. But the more commonly used standard for measuring progress on job creation based on a survey by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows a loss of 33,900 jobs over that same period.

Barrett has accused Walker of cooking the books in advance of the recall.