ETA readies workforce push

Delivered every Monday by 10 a.m., Weekly Shift examines the latest news in employment, labor and immigration politics and policy.

Sep 11, 2023 View in browser   By Olivia Olander QUICK FIX EVERYTHING ETA ALL AT ONCE: The Biden administration’s massive spending on infrastructure and climate has put the Labor Department’s Employment and Training Administration in an unusually favorable position, the acting head of the office told Shift. “The ETA in the workforce system is often used to playing the firefighter in our labor market. You lose the job, you get knocked down, the plant closes,” said Acting Assistant Secretary Brent Parton. “But right now … we actually know where the ball is going.” The office is perhaps best known for administering unemployment insurance on the federal level, and it’s been without a confirmed head since the start of the Biden administration. But Parton said investments in specific sectors including broadband, semiconductors and electric vehicle infrastructure have given it a renewed sense of direction in its employment pipeline programs. “The scale of need is going to be huge, and the incentives are huge,” Parton said. That includes $400 million in investments in the expansion and diversification of registered apprenticeship programs, he said. Parton declined to comment on the content or progress of anticipated proposed rules revamping the national apprenticeship system or tweaking the H-2B visa program, both of which were slated for August. However, on apprenticeships he noted the administration’s commitment to seeing younger and underrepresented workers participate. On the other end of the equation are partnerships connecting with cities and states. ETA last month announced it’s working with the National Governors Association on state workforce development systems. A meeting this summer of the department’s initiative with the National League of Cities included closed door workforce conversations between city leaders, acting Labor Secretary Julie Su and other senior White House officials, said Michael Bartlett, who manages workforce programs at NLC. “We’re popular now,” Bartlett said of the workforce development sector in an interview. “These investments really give us a platform. And you know, people come to us,” he added. Youth workers in particular present a challenge because of the learning losses in the pandemic, Parton said, exacerbated by the country’s aging workforce. “We’re dealing with, I think, an issue at a scale that the country has not fully recognized and appreciated, and at the same time, with levels of resources to meet broader needs that haven’t kept up to task. … If we don't build these systems, we're going to miss out on those huge opportunities,” Parton said. GOOD MORNING. It’s Monday, Sept. 11. Welcome back to Morning Shift, your go-to tipsheet on labor and employment-related immigration. It’s been 181 days since the Senate received Julie Su’s nomination. FIRST IN SHIFT: Nick got married this weekend! Congrats Nick! Send heartfelt well-wishes, feedback, tips and exclusives to nniedzwiadek@politico.com and oolander@politico.com. Follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @NickNiedz and @oliviaolanderr. Want to receive this newsletter every weekday? Subscribe to POLITICO Pro. You’ll also receive daily policy news and other intelligence you need to act on the day’s biggest stories. Unions DC EYES DETROIT: White House officials are privately “aware” a strike by United Auto Workers is likely, despite President Joe Biden’s public prediction that it won’t happen, Holly Otterbein, Zack Colman and your host report. The possibility of an autoworker strike on Ford, GM and Stellantis has outsize political implications for Biden, given his vocal support for unions and his prioritizing of the electric vehicle transition caught in the crosshairs. UAW President Shawn Fain in a Facebook Live appearance Friday said that if there is no deal by the end of the contract Thursday night, “There will be a strike — at all three if need be.” “Of course it’s a concern and something that has been closely watched,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told POLITICO. “From an administration perspective, we’re in contact with the parties, urging them to get to a solution.” White House officials have approached their role as something beyond monitoring the negotiations, but also stops well short of intervening, according to people familiar with their thinking. “The president did not want intervention … but he did want engagement,” said a senior White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the matter freely. More union news: “Grindr's controversial RTO policy causes employee exodus,” from Axios. Even more: “Las Vegas Hotel Workers Move Closer to Potential Strike,” from The Wall Street Journal. Around the Agencies FIDUCIARY RULE MOVES: The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs late Friday received the Labor Department’s proposed rule amending the definition of investment advice fiduciaries, days after top Republicans in Congress asked the department to halt rulemaking on the issue. An Obama-era effort to expand the definition of "fiduciary" — and with it, the requirements for more financial professionals to act in investors' best interests — was effectively killed in court, House Education and the Workforce Committee Chair Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) and top HELP Committee Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) noted in a letter at the end of August. Also on its way: OIRA also posted that last week it concluded its review of a Homeland Security proposed rule to amend H-2 temporary worker programs. LABOR IN SUPPLY CHAINS: The Biden administration and partners in Asia will establish a new process to call out labor violations in each others’ supply chains as part of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, our Gavin Bade reports on the Commerce Department’s announcement Thursday. The process has similarities to the labor provisions in the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. But unlike USMCA, this agreement would not create penalties for wrongdoers or force them to correct the violations, Gavin reports. OPINION: “Julie Su Reworks Overtime,” from The Wall Street Journal’s editorial board. On the Hill GOP NLRB PICK IN THE WORKS: Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski said the White House is reviewing a Republican nominee to the National Labor Relations Board, Bloomberg Law reports. The outlet notes: “Murkowski told Bloomberg Law that she had assumed the Republican pick was being held up by the Democratic majority, but in fact she was told that her party was the one that didn’t offer a Republican pairing in time, she said.” The Senate confirmed NLRB member Gwynne Wilcox to another term last week, filling the Democratic vacancy. Nominees favored by each party are often pushed through the Senate concurrently; however, Wilcox was confirmed alone. Murkowski was one of two Republicans to side with Democrats in voting for Wilcox’s confirmation. Murkowski said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) assured her the future Republican nominee would receive consideration on the Senate floor, cinching her support for Wilcox, Bloomberg Law reports. IN THE STATES HEALTH CARE MINIMUM WAGE: An emerging California deal from the SEIU and the health industry could bring minimum wage for health care workers in the state to $25 an hour, our Jeremy B. White reports. The industry agreed to the wage hike in exchange for a moratorium on bills and ballot initiatives targeting dialysis clinics, Jeremy reports according to six people with knowledge of the negotiations. It’s not clear Gov. Gavin Newsom would sign a bill reflecting the agreement. More in the states: “Wisconsin sawmill agrees to pay $191K to federal regulators after 16-year-old boy killed on the job,” from The Associated Press. Even more: “Labor seeks reference-based pricing vote for [New Jersey] public worker health plans,” from our Daniel Han. In the Workplace TAKING THE NIGHT SHIFT: Farmers are increasingly working overnight, as both workers and produce face challenges in extreme heat, The Washington Post reports. “Inevitably, it’s going to be hotter during the day, and that’s going to mean even more night farming where it’s feasible,” a professor of agricultural economics at the University of California, Davis told the Post. “And when I say feasible, I mean where it’s profitable.” — Related: “Employers turn to ice vests, sweat stickers to cope with extreme heat,” also from The Washington Post. What We're Reading  — “Starbucks’ Denials of Transfers Legal, Labor Board Judge Rules,” from Bloomberg Law. — “Two neighboring Ohio factories - one new, one closed - could tell the future of US auto industry,” from CNN. — “Citing NYC migrant crisis, Adams calls for steep budget cuts, hiring freeze,” from our Jeff Coltin and Joe Anuta. — “Chevron Workers Begin Industrial Action at Australian Natural-Gas Plants,” from The Wall Street Journal. — “It’s Not Your Imagination—Shopping in Person Is Getting Worse,” from The Wall Street Journal. THAT’S YOUR SHIFT!   Follow us on Twitter Nick Niedzwiadek @nickniedz Olivia Olander @oliviaolanderr   Follow us

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