What People Are Saying: A Stronger Workforce for America Act
WASHINGTON – Today, the House will consider A Stronger Workforce for America Act (H.R. 6655), which makes critical updates to the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) to strengthen connections between employers and the workforce system, and put more Americans on the pathway to a successful career. Advocates and experts support provisions in this legislation that expand opportunities for workers who are looking to access good-paying jobs and employers seeking to fill jobs with skilled workers. Here's what they have said:
American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) and Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT): “We write on behalf of the nation’s community colleges and their more than 10 million students to state our support for A Stronger Workforce for America Act (ASWAA), which we hope will be considered by the full House soon. This bill will help our current and future students better participate in our economy, enabling them to generate family-sustaining wages.
“We endorse the bill’s increased emphasis on training, which is a longstanding priority of community colleges, reflected in a requirement that local areas spend at least 50% of funds on skills development. Dedicating H-1B revenues that provides for the creation of mandatory-funded $5,000 Individual Training Accounts is also a major improvement. These two provisions, along with other aspects of the legislation, should greatly increase WIOA’s support of workforce education.”
American Health Care Association and the National Center for Assisted Living: “We write to…officially endorse HR 6655, A Stronger Workforce for America Act. The Nursing home sector continues to struggle with providing a secure and stable workforce. Currently nursing homes still need an additional 131,300 individual to return to pre-pandemic levels. That is why this legislation is so crucial.”
AARP: “H.R. 6655 provides greater flexibility in designing job training for older workers that considers their existing skills and past work experience. It offers training and resources to encourage entrepreneurship and nontraditional employment, which is especially attractive to many older workers interested in options beyond traditional wage and salaried positions. As work requirements continue to change and the use of technology increases in the workforce, we are pleased this bill provides training in digital literacy and information technology for older workers.”
American Library Association: “The American Library Association (ALA) supports House passage of H.R. 6655, A Stronger Workforce for America Act. We commend Chairwoman Foxx and Ranking Member Scott for their bipartisan leadership in developing this legislation. The bill recognizes the role that libraries play in workforce development and strengthens the integration of libraries in the workforce ecosystem. In particular, the bill adds public libraries as entities eligible to operate a one-stop center, specifies that public libraries are among service providers that can receive a contract through the one-stop delivery system to provide career services as approved by the local board, and supports services to help workers attain digital literacy skills.”
Business Roundtable: “Too few Americans — particularly those with employment barriers — can access needed training, and too few businesses utilize the system as a solution to evolving workforce needs. A Stronger Workforce for America Act would help address these shortcomings.”
California Opportunity Youth Network and New Ways to Work: “H.R. 6655, A Stronger Workforce for America Act presents a bipartisan opportunity to build up WIOA’s strong foundation and make efficiency improvements, along with new flexibilities that will ensure better outcomes for states, workforce boards, training providers and more importantly the millions of young people who could be helped on their pathways to careers.”
Chamber of Commerce: “The U.S. Chamber of Commerce strongly supports H.R. 6655, A Stronger Workforce for America Act, which would modernize America's workforce system. The Chamber will consider including votes on this legislation in our "How They Voted" Congressional scorecard.”
“We are pleased that this bill would address many of the priorities the Chamber identified in our America Works Initiative. The Chamber strongly supports provisions of the bill that would ensure that a majority of authorized funds are directed to workforce development through individual training accounts as well as on-the-job and other employer-based workforce training. The Chamber is also pleased that the bill would emphasize employer needs by increasing business representation on workforce boards, support program innovation; improve labor market data collection, and hold states, local boards, and providers accountable for results.”
COABE: "On behalf of the 79,000 adult educators that the Coalition on Adult Basic Education (COABE) represents, I write to support passage of the bipartisan Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) reauthorization bill, H.R. 6655, A Stronger Workforce for America Act (ASWA). COABE is pleased to see many of its WIOA recommendations reflected in H.R. 6655, including promoting greater use of integrated education and training programs (IETs); ensuring additional resources are devoted to professional development for adult education practitioners; providing opportunities to professionalize the adult educator field; and recognizing that adult learners need to gain digital literacy skills."
Communities in Schools: “Communities in Schools (CIS), a national non-profit network of local affiliates, is pleased to support many of the youth provisions within the bipartisan H.R. 6655, A Stronger Workforce for America Act. H.R. 6655 will help keep at-risk students in school and also serve to re-engage opportunity youth by providing them skills to succeed in the workforce and other post-high school opportunities.”
Data Quality Campaign: “ASWA makes important strides toward improving this much?needed data ecosystem and meeting the evolving needs and expectations of states, workforce development boards, employers, and workers who each have substantial need for transparent, valuable, actionable, and secure information.”
IBM: “IBM believes the talent gap is one of the biggest challenges facing businesses today and we are taking bold action to help close it through our social impact education programs. In our experience leading skills development programs, we know that talent is everywhere, but opportunity is not. That’s why we’re thrilled that today A Stronger Workforce for America Act is advancing out of the House. This bill would modernize our public workforce system and dedicate funds to quality, in-demand skills programs that help more Americans enter the workforce and advance careers which will continue to be shaped by the rapid adoption of AI.”
Jobs for the Future: “On behalf of Jobs for the Future, I am writing to express our support for House consideration of H.R. 6655, “A Stronger Workforce for America Act.” We commend the Committee on Education & the Workforce’s deliberate, bipartisan approach to reauthorizing the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. While we have reservations about certain provisions in ASWA and urge further refinement of the bill as it moves through the legislative process, we are eager to see this crucial reauthorization advance to the Senate.”
LinkedIn: “LinkedIn is pleased to support H.R. 6655, “A Stronger Workforce for America Act”, and applauds your bipartisan commitment to strengthen the value and impact of programs currently authorized under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA).
“A Stronger Workforce for America Act is a significant step forward to transform how we prepare the U.S. Workforce for the jobs of the future and more efficiently and equitably match talent to opportunity.”
Manufacturing Institute and the National Association of Manufacturers: "The Manufacturing Institute strongly supports H.R. 6655 and its essential updates to the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. This legislation modernizes WIOA to meet the needs of today’s manufacturing by expanding both the amount and options for skills development provided under the law and most critically, strengthening connections between employers and the workforce system to ensure that skills development is connected to regional needs. This bill will improve our nation’s job training system and offer greater access to postsecondary education and skills development which will provide manufacturers that are willing to invest in workforce development the opportunity to do so effectively.
"As an organization that supports manufacturers small and large and from all sectors across the United States, we urge you to support passage of H.R. 6655 and expand access to the skills education and training individuals need to secure family-supporting manufacturing jobs."
NAF: “This bill, H.R. 6655, represents a crucial step towards aligning our education and workforce systems to meet the demands of our rapidly evolving economy. By providing more flexibility in funding for work-based learning opportunities for in-school students and requiring some internships to be paid, we enhance high school students individual educational and economic prospects and cultivate a skilled talent pipeline that benefits communities and our nation. NAF urges policymakers to continue recognizing the importance of investing in our youth through initiatives in this legislation and we look forwarding to engaging with lawmakers to ensure a brighter future for generations to come.”
National Association of State Chambers: “We support “A Stronger Workforce for America Act” because it addresses the urgent need to grow our workforce and ensure a talent pipeline exists for the future.”
National Association of State Directors of Adult Education (NASDAE): “We appreciate the effort to highlight the importance of investing in workforce development and adult education as a key component of our nation’s recovery from the pandemic and continued strengthening. We appreciate several of the elements of the WIOA reauthorization that were crafted by the Committee, including the overall effort to introduce additional flexibility for States so that we can be responsive to the unique needs of our states and communities.”
National Forum for Nurses: “We support the Stronger Workforce for America Act’s goals [to make] critical improvements to the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) that will expand the skills development provided under the law, strengthen the relationship between employers and the workforce system, and put more Americans on the pathway to successful careers.”
Per Scholas: “On behalf of Per Scholas, I am writing to express our support for A Stronger Workforce for America Act (H.R. 6655) and urge its swift passage on the House floor. We are thrilled that this bipartisan effort would reinvigorate our national workforce system with improvements that better align workforce development providers, employers, and workforce boards with the needs of America’s workers.”
Rebuilding America’s Middle Class (RAMC): “H.R. 6655 would make critical improvements to the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) that would strengthen the relationship between employers and a pipeline of talented workers. It would also expand and improve the quality of skills development provided under the law, allowing more Americans the opportunity to acquire the skills and knowledge they need to support their families and the economy. The bill’s provisions to include funding for Individual Training Accounts (ITAs) and ensure more WIOA funding is used for skilling and upskilling services are critical improvements that will have positive impacts for workers and employers alike.”
SER Jobs for Progress National: “As an organization committed to promoting the economic and social well-being of all individuals through education, training, and employment, we believe that your WIOA reauthorization bill will continue to play a significant role in helping individuals acquire the skills they need to succeed in the workforce and attain long-term economic stability.
“The bill's focus on partnerships and career pathways aligns perfectly with SER National's mission to enable underserved communities, including the Hispanic community, to fully participate in the socio-economic mainstream and achieve equal access and parity in all aspects of American society.”
SHRM: “SHRM is encouraged by the bipartisan effort to reauthorize the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). This legislation represents a significant step toward strengthening America’s workforce and ensuring its long-term global competitiveness. This legislation provides employers, educators, and job seekers with valuable tools and resources, ultimately leading to a more skilled, adaptable, and resilient workforce.”
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