U.S. President Barack Obama travels to North Carolina Monday to hear private-sector proposals for boosting job creation, as he tries to reassure voters worried about a slow economic recovery.

Mr. Obama will meet in the city of Durham with 26 business leaders he appointed in to a Jobs and Competitiveness Council.

Council leader Jeffrey Immelt, the chief executive of General Electric, outlined the proposals in a joint article with American Express Chief Executive Ken Chenault Monday in the Wall Street Journal.

They said the panel will present Mr. Obama with an initial report recommending government and private-sector measures that could create one million jobs. The proposals include simplifying visa procedures to attract more tourists to the United States and hiring unemployed construction workers to improve energy efficiency in commercial buildings.

Prior to meeting the council, Mr. Obama will tour a Durham manufacturing facility run by Cree, Inc., a maker of energy-efficient LED lighting.

White House advisor Valerie Jarrett says many of the council’s ideas can be implemented without spending taxpayer money.

The president is under pressure from Republicans who control the House of Representatives to sharply cut government spending in return for Republican approval of an increase to the national debt limit.

Mr. Obama has seen his public approval rating decline in recent weeks as the nation’s unemployment rate edged up to 9.1 percent in May. He faces re-election next year.

North Carolina’s jobless rate of 9.7 percent is among the highest in the country. Mr. Obama won the state by 14,000 votes in 2008, the narrowest margin of his presidential election campaign.