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OPA News Release: [03/17/2005]
Contact Name: Jane
Norris or Stephanie Cathcart
Phone Number: 202-693-4676
Release
Number: 05-0427-NAT
Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao Emphasizes More Resources
for Protecting Workers, Job Training Initiatives in President's Budget
WASHINGTON-U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao today told a House
appropriations subcommittee that President Bush's new budget request includes
additional resources for protecting workers' health, safety, pay and benefits,
as well as providing for new job training reforms to make federal-state
training programs more flexible and effective.
"The President's budget will enable the department to build on its
record-setting enforcement of our worker protection laws," Secretary Elaine L.
Chao said in testimony before the U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on
Labor, Health and Human Services and Education. "This budget will help us
implement bold new training initiatives and reform the workforce investment
system to serve more people and achieve even better results."
"The department will continue to focus on worker safety and health and
protecting workers' pay, retirement and health benefits," Chao continued. "We
will take further steps to strengthen the reemployment rights of veterans and
will seek to increase access to quality health benefits for workers and their
families through initiatives such as association health plans."
Chao pointed out that the President's FY 2006 budget builds on the
Administration's strong record of protecting workers by increasing resources
for each of the department's principal enforcement agencies. Highlights of the
enforcement record show:
- Worker fatalities have fallen to record lows over the past four
years. Fatalities in mining operations have dropped to the lowest point since
records have been kept. Since 2001, Hispanic workplace fatalities have been
reduced by 11.6 percent.
- In FY 2004, EBSA achieved more than $3 billion in monetary results
for workers' retirement and health plans-a 121 percent increase over the
previous year.
- In FY 2004, more than 265,000 workers received nearly $200 million in
back wages-including overtime-as a result of the Wage and Hour Division's
enforcement operations.
Chao also noted this Administration's accomplishments in providing job
training programs, including:
- introducing a job training program for members of the armed services
wounded in the War on Terror;
- implementing the President's Community College initiative which helps
workers enhance their skills, connect with employers and find good jobs, and
- launching, in FY 2004, the High Growth Job Training Initiative
focused on helping workers train for and find jobs in the sectors of the
economy that are fast growing and experiencing a shortage of workers.
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