When federal pandemic unemployment programs expired, they shifted immense pressure onto America’s public workforce system. It funds career training, education and job search support predominantly for workers who have been laid off or face barriers to economic mobility. The system aims to align workers’ needs — such as livable wages and job availability — with those of employers — such as a healthy labor supply trained for in-demand jobs. Its purpose is to fuel economic growth and self-sufficiency.
Given Monday’s halt to extended assistance and a decline in workforce system participation during the COVID-19 crisis, a significant increase in enrollments may begin this week among workers who lost the hardest-hit jobs last year — jobs some policymakers refer to as “low-skilled occupations,” paying under $15 hourly.
Meanwhile, if the bipartisan infrastructure bill passes as-is, those charged with staffing its resulting projects will discover a shortage of unemployed-yet-qualified labor. This is because most top infrastructure occupations are middle-skilled jobs. Each requires specialized preparation after high school, from a few weeks of training to an Associate’s degree. Most pay $15 or more hourly and sit on career pathways to increased earnings.
If the bill passes, governments must incorporate workforce development into infrastructure project planning from the outset. They should partner with regional workforce development boards and by extension, the public system to recruit, train and hire workers who have lost jobs in low-skilled occupations during the pandemic. If staffed effectively, these projects could increase household incomes for thousands of workers who may not have attained family-sustaining wages before the recession.
Despite these stakes, Washington has not funded the public workforce system adequately during the pandemic. Legislators must provide additional dollars to the system urgently through the reconciliation process or a special provision under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) — the chief law supporting workforce development activities — to drive an equitable recovery.
Although Congress and President BidenJoe BidenBiden administration readies lawsuit over Texas abortion law: Report Police expect Capitol fencing reinstalled for Sept. 18 rally Elder warns of ‘shenanigans’ in California recall election MORE have navigated many firsts during the pandemic, providing emergency funds to the system amidst a massive unemployment crisis would not be one of them. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 injected more than $3.5 billion into the system’s key dislocated (laid off) worker, adult, youth and employment services programs alone. The act provided this funding on top of Congress’s yearly allocations to these programs.
In the period relevant to annual funding during the pandemic,…
Read More: Our infrastructure goals are doomed to fail without a trained workforce