Labor Unions Send HELP Leadership Letter on WIOA Reauthorization
Washington Update
WIOA Reauthorization
Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) negotiations continue with Congress possibly taking up the bill after November elections. On Monday, September 30, several labor unions — including the AFL-CIO, SEIU, and AFT — wrote a letter to Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders (VT) and Ranking Member Bill Cassidy (LA) urging them to maintain certain worker protections in any new WIOA legislation. A dispute over language on adherence to federal labor laws contributed to the bill’s delay.
A coalition of business groups called the provision requiring that WIOA funding recipients disclose that they comply with all applicable federal labor laws ‘overly sweeping and undiscriminating,’ and said that a minor violation could prevent a company from engaging under WIOA. Another consortium of larger corporations and higher education providers told Senate leaders the requirement could have ‘devastating consequences’ in attracting and retaining employers to partner with the public workforce system.
Click here to access the letter.
U.S. Department of Energy
The offshore wind industry is growing. According to the 2024 Offshore Wind Market Report, the U.S. industry’s project pipeline grew by 53% from the previous year—enough to power more than 26 million homes if fully developed. As the U.S. offshore wind industry grows, so does the number of good-paying job opportunities and demand to fill them in communities across the nation.
To meet these growing demands, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO) has announced the $1.9 million Offshore Wind Workforce Readiness program through a Partnership Intermediary Agreement with ConnectWerx. This $1.9 million opportunity will make awards of up to $250,000 to successful applicants offering offshore wind education and training programs that offer apprenticeship readiness programs, registered apprenticeship programs, or maritime/mariner programs, with particular attention to programs that support underserved communities.
DOE seeks to fund programs that are in alignment with local and regional organizations, and that have relationships with employers within the U.S. offshore wind supply chain. Domestically deployed clean energy supply chain and technologies will make American energy affordable and reliable.
Click here to learn more about the funding opportunity.
U.S. Department of Commerce
On Wednesday, October 2, the U.S. Department of Commerce issued a Notice of Intent (NOI) to announce an open competition demonstrating how AI can assist in developing new sustainable semiconductor materials and processes that meet industry needs, and can be designed and adopted within five years. For the U.S. semiconductor industry to flourish in the long-term it must be able to develop innovative and commercially competitive technologies to sustainably produce materials and manufacture chips in a way that protects the environment and local communities. To accomplish this, CHIPS for America anticipates up to $100 million in funding to award recipients that develop university-led, industry-informed collaborations about artificial intelligence-powered autonomous experimentation (AI/AE) relevant to sustainable semiconductor manufacturing.
Click here to read the full press release.
Unemployment Rate
On Friday, October 4, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the September unemployment report, which showed nonfarm payrolls increased by 254,000 - the biggest increase in six months - with the unemployment rate decreasing from 4.2% from 4.1%, pointing to a resilient economy that likely does not need the Federal Reserve to deliver large interest rate cuts for the rest of this year. Revisions to both the July and August report showed the economy added 72,000 more jobs during those two months than previously reported. Wage growth rose to 4% year over year, from a 3.9% annual gain in August. On a monthly basis, wages increased 0.4%, in line with August’s reading.
Click here to access the report.
Click here to read Acting Secretary of Labor Su’s statement on the August jobs report.
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