E3: Economy, Energy, Environment
The federal government's actions to speed recovery and create jobs for the communities most affected by the economic downturn takes many forms around the country, from investing in small business to job retraining to clean energy investments. Ed Montgomery, executive director of the White House Council on Automotive Communities and Workers, checked up on one such innovative project last Friday with a visit to Advance Industrial Manufacturing (AIM) — a Columbus, Ohio small business and supplier to energy and auto groups. AIM is participating in the creative cross-sector "E3: Economy, Energy, Environment" pilot project. What brings together federal agencies, including the Departments of Labor, Energy, and Commerce, the Environmental Protection Agency and Small Business Administration to assist manufacturers in reducing energy consumption, preventing pollution, increasing productivity and enhancing innovation.
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OSHA Official Testifies About Worker Safety in Energy Industry
Promising that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) will continue to do all it can to stem the tide of worker injuries and deaths in the energy industry, Deputy Assistant Secretary for OSHA Jordan Barab called on Congress this week to grant the agency stronger enforcement powers by passing the Protecting America’s Workers Act. Barab recalled that in the past four months alone at least 60 workers have died in explosions; fires and collapses at refineries; coal mines; an oil drilling rig; and in natural gas operations. He reiterated that OSHA will continue with increased enforcement efforts, awareness campaigns and partnerships with other federal agencies, but that increased penalties and stronger whistleblower protections will lead to fewer casualties in the energy sector.
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LA City College Commencement
Secretary Solis was invited to be the keynote speaker at Los Angeles City College’s (LACC) graduation on Tuesday. the school granted 1,400 degrees and certificates to the class of 2010, with 50 percent of the graduates being the first in their family to go to college. Solis shared her personal story as well as the difference a higher education made in her life. Her advice to graduates: "Go out and take risks. Find mentors. Network. set goals for yourself. Learn about other cultures and issues."
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Oates Sends Grads on Their Way
Pass on to others the helping hands that guided you along the way. That was the message that Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training Jane Oates delivered last Friday to graduates during Berkshire Community College’s 50th commencement exercises in Lenox, Massachusetts. The first community college in the state, Berkshire awarded associate degrees to 573 students. Prior to the commencement, Oates met with local business and education leaders to discuss the importance of targeted career training in developing a highly skilled workforce.
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Wirtz Remembered
Secretary Solis and the family of former U.S. Secretary of Labor W. Willard Wirtz hosted a memorial service in honor of Wirtz’s life and legacy on Thursday, June 3. Wirtz was the nation’s 10th labor secretary and served between 1962 and 1969 the Kennedy and Johnson administrations. Family members and life-long friends and colleagues, including Tom Donahue president emeritus, AFL-CIO; Frank Erwin, former executive assistant to Wirtz; Bill Moyers, journalist; Fran Weeks, sister of Wirtz; and Wirtz son Philip, shared their fond memories from both his personal and professional life. “This is only the beginning of many celebrations of Bill Wirtz’s life and legacy,” said Secretary Solis after announcing that the department will launch the Willard Wirtz Award to honor a young DOL employee who exemplifies Wirtz’ deep commitment to worker justice and public service.
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ETA Takes Home a Telly
A video production featuring the Employment and Training Administration’s Disability Program Navigator Initiative has just been named a winner in the 31st Annual Telly Awards competition. A Bronze Telly was awarded in the government relations category for the "Making Connections for Job Seekers with Disabilities" video. This piece features the work of an integrated resource team within the One-Stop Career Center in Portland, Oregon. The team assists a customer as he successfully pursues training at a local community college and lands a paid internship.
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Upcoming Deadlines & Events
Open Funding Opportunities
MSHA — Kentucky River Mine Rescue Contest
OFCCP — Agency Update: Northeast Corporate Industry Liaision
OFCCP — Compliance Assistance Seminar for Construction Contractors
OFCCP — Connecticut Construction Group Meeting
OFCCP — EEO Obligations of Construction Contractors
OFCCP — Open Forum
OFCCP — So You've Been Scheduled for a Compliance Evaluation: How to Respond When You Get the Scheduling Letter
OLMS — Compliance Assistance Seminar
OWCP — Town Hall Meetings to Assist Nuclear Weapons Workers
WB — 2010 Annual Asian American Women’s Coalition Banquet (AAWC)
WB — Regional Sustainability Roundtable
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What's Hot
Secretary Awards Grant Exceeding $19 Million to Assist Auto Workers
During a trip earlier this week, Secretary Solis announced a $19 million grant to assist 4,300 workers affected by layoffs at New United Motors Manufacturing Inc. (NUMMI) located in Fremont, Calif. and several of the company’s suppliers. The announcement took place at the NUMMI Re-employment Center. "NUMMI's closure was not only a blow to the thousands of workers who were employed at the plant but to the region's economy as a whole," said Secretary Solis. "Many of the hard-working Californians impacted by layoffs at NUMMI now will be able to receive training and employment services that will allow them to re-enter the workforce in good jobs."
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Around DOL
DOL’s Hardest Working 90 Year-old
90 Years: Still Working. That’s the theme for the Women’s Bureau as it kicks-off its ninety-year anniversary this Friday. Secretary Solis and Women’s Bureau Director Sara Manzano-Díaz will host a special event with featured guests First Lady Michelle Obama and President of Working Mother Media Carol Evans. The Women’s Bureau was created by Congress two months before women received the right to vote in 1920. For the last nine decades, it has worked on behalf of America’s working women. The celebration will highlight the Bureau’s record of achievement and the current vision of empowering working women to achieve economic security.
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DOL Working for You
Women’s Bureau Feeds Restaurateur’s Green Ambitions
Tammie Spivey’s goal to open a fast food organic restaurant should become a reality later this year, thanks to the “Women Going Green” project funded by the department’s Women’s Bureau.
The forty-one year old Georgia native received training from expert counselors on how to write a small business plan, design a web site, and forge a green career. Others have helped her plan the restaurant’s décor and with the hiring of a chef.
Her “The Healthy Fork” eatery - complete with a drive through window - will feature signature organic sandwiches and avoid anything fried. Her nutritionally-wholesome food idea “is based on the premise that you are what you eat, drink and breathe.”
She said the Women's Bureau program “put me in touch with people helping to build my team to go green.”
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News You Can Use
Extra Time for Your Career to Shine
The deadline for America’s Career Video Challenge has been extended. Applicants now have until August 20 to submit one-to-three minute videos highlighting one of 15 occupations. Applicants who submitted videos prior to the previous deadline are welcome to send in a new video replacing the original entry. The best videos in each of 15 categories will be selected to win a $1,000 cash prize. Don’t work in one of the 15 occupations? Find a friend, co-worker, or family member who does, and ask them to let you film their day-to-day work. The deadline may be extended, but don’t let this opportunity pass you by.
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DOL in Action
MSHA’s Request for Expedited Hearing Granted
The Federal Mine Safety and Health Regulation Commission granted the Mine Safety and Health Administration’s (MSHA) request to expedite legal proceedings against Big Ridge Inc.. The hearing, scheduled for June 22, will address continuing harm to miners at Big Ridge’s Willow Lake Portal mine in Galatia, Ill. “This unusual legal action is being taken to achieve resolution of these citations based on the operator’s repeated violations of standards known to contribute to injuries and loss of life,” said Joseph A. Main, assistant secretary of labor for MSHA. The alleged violations include the failure to provide adequate protection from roof falls and to properly maintain equipment according to MSHA regulations. These violations are part of MSHA's "Rules to Live By" enforcement initiative designed to spotlight the most frequently cited standards in fatality investigations.
OFCCP Settles Wackenhut Hiring Discrimination Case
The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) announced that The Wackenhut Corp., doing business as G4S Wackenhut, has entered into a consent decree to settle findings of hiring discrimination at its Aurora, Colo., facility. “This settlement of $290,000 in back pay on behalf of 446 African-Americans should put all federal contractors on notice that the Labor Department is serious about eliminating systemic discrimination,” said OFCCP Director Patricia Shiu. The consent decree settles OFCCP’s allegations that Wackenhut engaged in hiring discrimination when it rejected African-American applicants for the position of traditional security officer.
Workers Impacted by Foreign Trade to Receive Outreach and Support
The Department announced this week a total of $1.4 million in Trade Adjustment Assistance Technical Assistance and Outreach Partnership Grants to provide services in 10 states. In partnership with the AFL-CIO Working for America Institute; the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers; and the Washington State Labor Council AFL-CIO, the grants will be used to support projects for dislocated workers affected by foreign trade. "By partnering with national organizations and labor groups with strong local ties, we will provide needed outreach and support to workers," said Secretary Solis. Grant recipients will work with strategic partners in California, Indiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Washington and Wisconsin to support workers in need.
US Postal Service Fined Nearly $1 Million for Electrical Hazards
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) fined the U.S. Postal Service nearly $1 million for electrical hazards found at two Philadelphia, Pa., facilities and the Pittsburgh, Pa., mail processing facility. OSHA's investigation determined that at both locations, employees were not adequately trained and were performing work without proper personal protective equipment, which put them at risk of serious injury. The combined proposed penalties for the Philadelphia facilities are $497,000 and $299,500 for the Pittsburgh facility.
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Spotlight on States: Oregon
Workers laid off from two Oregon companies are eligible to receive employment services through a $495,238 National Emergency Grant. Manufacturing workers impacted by layoffs at Blount, Inc. in Portland, Oregon and Carlton Co. Inc. in Milwaukie are eligible to receive supportive services – such as dependent care, and transportation – that will help them successfully complete job training programs. The workers were previously certified for the Trade Adjustment Assistance program where they will access career training.
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Opportunities are Open: ETA
Although, time is running out to enter the Employment and Training Administration’s (ETA) career video challenge, opportunities are still open in ETA. Everyday ETA staff is working to assist displaced workers with training and programs that will help them secure good jobs with opportunities for advancement. Explore the ETA positions below or view all the rewarding careers at DOL.
- Position in Washington DC Metro Area, DC
Workforce Development Specialist — GS-0142-13/13
DE-10-ETA-111
Close: 06/16/2010
- Position in Washington DC Metro Area, DC
Management and Program Analyst — GS-0343-13/13
DE-10-ETA-095
Close: 06/18/2010
- Position in Washington DC Metro Area, DC
Statistician (Economics) — GS-1530-09/09
DE-10-ETA-100
Close: 06/22/2010
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