|
 Printer-Friendly Version
Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
For more information call: (202) 219-8211
Secretary of Labor Alexis M. Herman today proposed a fiscal year 2000
budget of $39.6 billion that would fund programs to improve training, pay,
working conditions and benefits for American workers and raise labor standards
worldwide.
"We want to close the skills gap and open the doors of opportunity for
America's working families," Secretary Herman said. "We are building a strong
and competitive work force but we still have gaps to close, including the pay
gap for women and minorities."
Among Secretary Herman's priorities addressed in the proposed budget
are:
-- Universal Reemployment: $368 million increase towards a
five-year effort to ensure that all displaced workers get the job training they
want and need and that there is universal access to One Stop Career Centers.
-- Youth Activities: $100 million for Right Track Partnerships to
promote partnerships among schools, employers and community organizations to
reduce the high school drop-out rate; $31 million for Job Corps enhancements
and $250 million to continue the Youth Opportunities grants first funded last
year.
-- International Core Labor Standards: $35 million to improve
conditions for working people throughout the world, including $25 million to
the International Labor Organization to help developing nations establish core
labor standards and build their own social safety nets and $10 million for DOL
to provide technical assistance directly to developing countries. The budget
also continues last year's $30 million investment to combat exploitative child
labor.
-- Equal Pay: $4 million in new initiatives to eliminate wage
discrimination by helping federal contractors recruit qualified women in
non-traditional jobs as well as providing employers tools to assess and improve
their pay policies.
-- Welfare to Work: $1 billion to continue the welfare to work
program for another year, focusing on the hardest to employ welfare recipients
and the employment of non-custodial parents so they can help support their
children who are on welfare.
-- Health and Safety: $48 million in increases for the
Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the Mine Safety and Health
Administration. Their budgets include new initiatives in accident prevention on
the job.
"The welfare of our workers is increasingly tied to the health of the
global economy," Secretary Herman said. "That requires us to help build a
stable and prosperous international economic system at the same time as we
improve conditions for American workers. This budget will help us meet those
challenges."
The 2000 budget proposal totals $11.6 billion in discretionary spending,
which must be approved by Congress, for the department's programs, a net
increase of $626 million over the 1999 budget. The balance of the budget is
made up of unemployment insurance, welfare-to-work, workers compensation and
other mandatory programs.
# # #
BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS ATTACHED
BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS
The budget highlights are organized around Secretary Herman's three
strategic goals: a prepared workforce, a secure workforce and quality
workplaces. These goals reflect the belief that all workers "should have the
opportunity to find and hold secure jobs under reasonable working conditions
with good wages, reliable pensions, health benefits and opportunities to
improve their skills."
A PREPARED WORKFORCE: $1.5 Billion
Closing the Skills Gap and Wage
Gap
Training to close the skills gap is included in the $368 million
increase for the Universal Reemployment Initiative, the first year of a
five-year path to insure that every person who loses a job through no fault of
their own can receive help at a One Stop Career Center in finding a job and
that every dislocated worker can receive the training they want and need.
New initiatives for youth in at-risk situations include $100 million for
Youth Right Track Partnerships, a competitive grant program for local
projects designed to prevent youth from dropping out of school and encourage
those who have already dropped out to complete their high school education.
Job Corps would get a $31.4 million increase for completion of four new
centers, operating costs of new centers, salary increases for teachers and
staff and enhanced follow-up services for students who have completed the
program.
One billion dollars is included to extend Welfare-to-Work, as
announced by President Clinton, to continue to move long term hard-to-employ
welfare recipients into jobs. More attention will be given to the employment of
low-income non-custodial parents to help them support their children on
welfare.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics' budget increases $22 million to
maintain and improve statistical data for key economic indicators, which are
closely followed by business, labor and government.
A SECURE WORKFORCE: $369 million
Closing the Benefits Gap
Building on initiatives announced last year, the administration will
propose legislation to enhance the Unemployment Insurance safety net to
make the program more accessible to unemployed workers, assure the availability
of benefits in the event of an economic downturn and improve state
administrative operations. An increase of $71 million would go to the states to
invest in integrity activities, including benefit payment control, screening
for eligibility for benefits and audits.
The administration also will propose legislation to consolidate and
reform the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) and the
NAFTA-Transitional Adjustment Assistance (NAFTA-TAA) programs and extend
the combined program through Sept. 30, 2001. As part of the consolidation, the
proposed legislation would extend eligibility for TAA to those who lose their
jobs because of shifts in production abroad, similar to the current provision
under NAFTA-TAA for shifts in production to Canada and Mexico. With this
legislation, funds for this program will be increased by $157 million to
support the expected increase in participants.
To help workers get the most from their pension plan and health care
coverage, the budget includes $10 million for a new health education
campaign, enhanced enforcement of new health care provisions of the Employee
Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and other initiatives, such as a pilot
project to help small businesses with employee benefit plans and ways to
safeguard pension plan assets.
QUALITY WORKPLACES: $118 million
Closing the Gap in Working
Conditions
The department's budget includes $4.3 million for to increase compliance
with labor standards, including child labor laws, in nationally targeted
low-wage industries, including garment manufacturing and agricultural
production. The budget continues the $9 million funded last year to address
domestic child labor problems, including $5 million dedicated to demonstration
projects to provide alternatives to field work for migrant youth.
The department proposes an initiative of $35 million to promote the
establishment of core international labor standards. Of that, $25
million would go to the International Labor Organization, an agency of the
United Nations, for projects to help developing countries implement basic
worker protections and build social safety net systems, such as pension plans,
unemployment benefits and training programs. The remaining $10 million would be
for DOL to provide technical assistance directly to various countries. The 2000
budget includes $30 million to the ILO to support its international child labor
program for the second year.
The proposed budget includes $48 million for innovative safety and
health programs in both the Occupational Safety and Health Administration
($35 million) and the Mine Safety and Health Administration ($13), including:
-- $4 million for OSHA to focus its enforcement on the most dangerous
workplaces and hazards;
-- $6.7 million to MSHA to reduce fatalities at surface mines through
accident prevention programs, to include more inspectors and training for
contractors working on mine property;
-- $10.5 million for OSHA to increase outreach, education, public
awareness and training in job safety and health.
The equal pay initiative ($4 million) will include assisting
contractors in recruiting qualified women for non-traditional occupations and
identifying best practices. It also includes public education about the
importance of equal pay.
The budget includes $10 million for research on the impact of the
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) on families and businesses and how
to make leave accessible and affordable for more working families.
Finally, the 2000 budget proposes an increase of $2 million for
innovative enforcement efforts, primarily an alternative disputes resolution
initiative to promote greater use of techniques to encourage consensual
resolution of disputes. The amount also includes funds to support a criminal
enforcement initiative.
Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
| 
