Senator Murray Leads Hearing on Tackling Systemic Barriers to Employment with High-Quality Workforce Development Opportunities

Senator Murray: “We can’t build back stronger, when our economy leaves out people who are ready and willing to take on good jobs.”

***WATCH SENATOR MURRAY’S OPENING REMARKS HERE***

(Washington, D.C.) – Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, led a hearing on supporting workers facing challenges finding good, high-paying jobs by ensuring they have access to high-quality workforce development opportunities.

During the hearing, Senator Murray highlighted that although we’ve made great progress rebuilding our economy from the COVID-19 crisis—with the highest economic growth in nearly four decades and a record six million jobs created last year—too many people are still facing barriers to employment. She made clear that challenges like a lack of access to child care, transportation, and a high-quality education are disproportionately undercutting so many communities—including women, workers earning low-wages, workers of color, people who are formerly incarcerated, and workers with disabilities.

“These inequities are holding our country back. We can’t build back stronger, when our economy leaves out people who are ready and willing to take on good jobs,” said Senator Murray. “And of course, these barriers don’t just hold back working families. They hold back businesses looking for workers to take on good-paying jobs and our economy as a whole. As we recover from this pandemic, we have to do so much better than simply returning to a normal that wasn’t working for working families.”

Senator Murray stressed the important role that workforce development programs can and should play in building back an economy that works for everyone and how high-quality workforce development programs, like registered apprenticeships, can help get workers good, high-paying jobs that put them on the path to success. Senator Murray emphasized that when workforce development programs provide assistance with transportation, housing, and child care, help getting work gear like uniforms and tools, accommodations for people with disabilities, and other support to help people overcome barriers, they help more people access the opportunities that will help them succeed. She also highlighted how high-quality programs can also help re-engage young people who might be considering leaving school before graduation, and help support workers making the transition back into their community after being incarcerated.

“If we want to rebuild an economy that works for everyone—we need to tear down the systemic barriers that stand between so many people and the opportunities they need to gain news skills, get better jobs, and support their families,” added Senator Murray. “This is why our nation’s workforce development programs are so important. High-quality work-based learning, registered apprenticeships, and other workforce development programs can help people grow in their careers or develop new skills and start new careers.” 

At the hearing, Senator Murray also noted the HELP Committee’s long track record of bipartisanship on workforce issues and reiterated her hope to continue making bipartisan progress to strengthen programs that help workers overcome barriers and get high-quality jobs.

“I’m proud to say we have a bipartisan track record on workforce issues, like when we passed the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act in 2014, and when we reauthorized the Perkins Career and Technical Education Act in 2018. And I know this remains a priority for everyone on this Committee. So I hope we can continue to make progress both by strengthening programs that help workers overcome barriers,” said Senator Murray.

The hearing included testimony from Ms. Melinda Mack, Executive Director of the New York Association of Training and Employment Professionals; Ms. Ashli Watts, President and CEO of the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce; Mr. Peter Beard, Senior Vice President for Regional Workforce Development for the Greater Houston Partnership; and Nicole Sherard-Freeman, Group Executive for Jobs, Economy & “Detroit at Work” for the City of Detroit.

Senator Murray’s opening remarks, as prepared for delivery, are below:

“Our nation has made great progress rebuilding our economy from the COVID-19 crisis. We’ve seen the highest economic growth in nearly four decades added a record six million jobs last year, and saw the biggest annual improvement in employment since we started collecting data.

“But our work isn’t done. And that’s especially clear when we look at how unequal this crisis, and the recovery so far, have been, and how that has compounded the inequities that existed before the pandemic.

“The unemployment rate for Black workers is still twice the rate for white workers. And Black and Latino workers were both nearly twice as likely as white workers to report losing income last month.

“Meanwhile, women have accounted for almost two-thirds of jobs lost during this pandemic. 

“And we heard last week about the challenges people with disabilities face in the workplace, and the need to make sure they can get competitive, integrated job opportunities, gain financial independence, and participate more fully in our communities.

“These inequities are holding our country back.

“We can’t build back stronger, when our economy leaves out people who are ready and willing to take on good jobs.

“We can’t build back fairer when people who want to learn new skills and seek better jobs, continue to face discrimination because of their race, their age, their income, their disability, or because their primary language isn’t English.

“And we can’t build an economy that works for working families when a single parent can’t afford child care so they can go to a job or participate in a workforce development program. Or when workers who can’t afford to invest in new skills and get the jobs they want simply because they can’t afford textbooks, transportation, tuition, or to even take time off from their current job to take a class at a local community college or pursue their higher education goals.

“And of course, these barriers don’t just hold back working families. They hold back businesses looking for workers to take on good-paying jobs and our economy as a whole.

“As we recover from this pandemic, we have to do so much better than simply returning to a normal that wasn’t working for working families.

“If we want to rebuild an economy that works for everyone—we need to tear down the systemic barriers that stand between so many people and the opportunities they need to gain news skills, get better jobs, and support their families.

“This is why our nation’s workforce development programs are so important.

“High-quality work-based learning, registered apprenticeships, and other workforce development programs can help people grow in their careers or develop new skills and start new careers.

“And when workforce development programs provide assistance with transportation, housing, and child care, help getting work gear like uniforms and tools, accommodations for people with disabilities, and other support to help people overcome barriers they ensure that everyone can access the opportunities that will help them succeed.

“In a national survey of workforce development program administrators—nearly all of them said supportive services were important for program retention and completion.

“In fact, program administrators who reported they were able to meet these needs saw four-out-of-five participants complete their programs while those who couldn’t meet these needs reported completion rates of less than one-in-three.

“Those numbers make clear how transformative worker-centered practices and supports can be.

“And I’ve seen in Washington state what happens when people have access to workforce development programs that understand, and tackle, the barriers between them and high quality jobs. 

“When Ali lost his job during the pandemic, the African Community Housing & Development in South Seattle helped him get financial aid, enroll in classes at Highline Community College, get a part-time job at an airline, and set out on a new, high-quality career path in aviation.

“When Rosalinda, a single parent in Yakima, wanted to improve her credentials and increase her pay, the public workforce system helped her enroll in Yakima Valley College, work on her resume, writing, and job interview skills, and get a new, better paying job in teaching.

“She no longer worries about putting food on the table, and was excited to be able to afford holiday gifts for her family last year.

“And across Washington state, the Aerospace Joint Apprenticeship Committee offers registered apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs—including to young people who’ve been impacted by the justice system.

“These programs give young people, who often have no work history, the opportunity and support to build the real world experience and skills, and industry connections they need to set out on new, high-quality careers.

“And not only have I heard so many other stories from Washington state about the importance of these programs—I have seen it firsthand.

“When I was growing up, my family was able to make it through hard times, because my mom was provided the support and the opportunity  to go back to school, get training, and ultimately, get a higher-paying job that allowed her—and our family—to succeed.

“That made a huge difference for us.

“So many families today have had the rug completely pulled out from under them by this pandemic, and I want to make sure they have the same opportunity my mom did.

“So I look forward to hearing from our witnesses today about what we can do to continue tearing down barriers, and building back our country stronger and fairer.

“I’m proud to say we have a bipartisan track record on workforce issues, like when we passed the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act in 2014, and when we reauthorized the Perkins Career and Technical Education Act in 2018.

“And I know this remains a priority for everyone on this Committee.

“So I hope we can continue to make progress both by strengthening programs that help workers overcome barriers.

“And also by addressing some of the systemic issues that create barriers in the first place like racism, sexism, ageism, and other forms of discrimination, poverty, barriers to worker organizing and collective bargaining, inadequate accommodations for people with disabilities, and a lack of paid leave, child care, and other policies that help make things a little easier on working families.

“Now, I’ll turn it over to Senator Burr for his opening remarks.”

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