WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su issued the following statement on the September 2024 Employment Situation report: 

“Today’s jobs report shows that our economy continues to thrive, adding 254,000 jobs in September, with the unemployment rate falling to 4.1 percent. With an average of 186,000 jobs added over the past three months, it’s clear that people who need a job are finding a job. That’s how strong our economy is. 

“We’re seeing steady growth across sectors like Private Education & Health Services (+81,000), Leisure & Hospitality (+78,000), Government (+31,000) and Construction (+25,000). At the same time, wages have risen 4.0 percent over the past year, putting more money in working families’ pockets. Since President Biden and Vice President Harris took office in January 2021, our economy has added over 16.2 million jobs, including 729,000 in manufacturing and 940,000 in construction. 

“Four years ago, students were logging into school via Zoom, trick-or-treating was canceled, and we faced unprecedented challenges. Today, as we approach Halloween 2024, our economy is on strong footing with record employment gains, shrinking unemployment gaps, and rising wages. The Biden-Harris administration has delivered on lower unemployment and inflation, creating a vibrant, inclusive economy that works for everyone.” 

WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su issued the following statement on the agreement reached between the International Longshoremen's Association and the United States Maritime Alliance.

“As President Biden, Vice President Harris and this administration have said again and again, collective bargaining works. I congratulate the International Longshoremen’s Association and the United States Maritime Alliance for reaching a tentative agreement on a strong wage package that allows the East Coast and Gulf ports to reopen while the parties finish bargaining on a new contract. 

“I applaud the longshoremen who do such important work and deserve to be valued for it, and the companies for the critical role they play in our supply chain and for recognizing the invaluable contributions of their workers. I’m so proud to be part of an administration that stands with working people in their fight for good jobs. When unions are strong, our economy is strong, and our country is strong.”

WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su issued the following statement on negotiations between USMX and the International Longshoremen’s Association:

“Over the last week and more, I have spent hours on the phone and in meetings with the parties urging them to find a way to reach a fair contract. This country’s port workers put their health and safety on the line to keep working through the pandemic so we could get the goods we needed as COVID raged and these workers will help communities recover from the devastating effects of Hurricane Helene. As these companies make billions and their CEOs bring in millions of dollars in compensation per year, they have refused to put an offer on the table that reflects workers’ sacrifice and contributions to their employer’s profits.

“The American economy has defied all expectations thanks to the Biden-Harris administration’s leadership. There is room for both companies and their workers to prosper. The parties need to get back to the negotiating table, and that must begin with these giant shipping magnates acknowledging that if they can make record profits, their workers should share in that economic success.”

WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su traveled to North Carolina for two events on Sept. 24, 2024, to promote the U.S. Department of Labor’s Good Jobs Principles, cement public and private sector partnerships that will build equitable workforce pipelines statewide and reaffirm the Biden-Harris administration’s efforts to create a generation of good-paying jobs while addressing the climate crisis. 

In Charlotte, Acting Secretary Su joined local elected officials, union and community leaders, and workforce providers to announce their commitment to adopt and implement the department’s Good Jobs Principles. The city’s building trades and community-based organizations announced the formation of the Charlotte Regional Apprenticeship Collaboration to strengthen efforts in greater Charlotte to develop pipelines of diverse and equitable apprenticeships.

“Through President Biden and Vice President Harris’s Investing in America agenda, we have made significant progress in delivering good jobs and economic security to communities across the country,” said Acting Secretary Su. “Here in North Carolina, that means $10.3 billion of investments in safe roads and bridges, clean air and water, and renewable energy. With today's announcement - and through partnerships of those in this room - we are going to make sure that every single cent of that $10.3 billion supports good-paying North Carolina jobs.”

In Cherokee, Acting Secretary Su toured the Oconaluftee Job Corps Civilian Conservation Center, part of the American Climate Corps. The ACC initiative seeks to train the next generation of clean energy, conservation and climate resilience workers and put them on a path to good-paying union jobs. During the visit, Acting Secretary Su formally “swore in” participants as American Climate Corps members. 

“When we take this oath, it’s a commitment that you are making not just to yourself, not just to the climate, but also to each other, a community of people who are going to be accountable to one another to put their talent, their hunger, their drive and the skills they learn here to good work,” Acting Secretary Su told participants. “…Your generation made this issue so critical that legislators could not ignore it, and your generation is going to be the one that shows us what’s possible and shows us a new way.”

LAS VEGAS – Acting Secretary Su traveled to Las Vegas Sept. 19, 2024, to commemorate The Venetian Resort’s historic first contract with the Culinary Workers Union, congratulate workers for their hard work in reaching the agreement, and reaffirm the administration’s commitment to supporting workers and union jobs.

The Acting Secretary joined Culinary Workers Union Local 226 Secretary-Treasurer Ted Pappageorge and The Venetian Resort Las Vegas President and CEO Patrick Nichols in offering remarks for the occasion.

“This is not just a landmark moment in the history of Las Vegas – it’s a victory for workers and a victory for the Venetian, because this first contract will provide stability and a guaranteed quality workforce - this is what can be achieved when workers and management come together to find common ground,” Acting Secretary Su said.

Media coverage highlighted Acting Secretary Su’s announcement as follows:

U.S. labor secretary helps celebrate contract at Las Vegas’ Venetian 

By Kyle Chouinard | Sept. 19, 2024

“I’ve never known workers that are trying to organize a union because they don’t want to work with their employer,” Su said Thursday at a contract celebration. “They want the employer to do well, and that shared success is the ... future of the romance that you all solidified here today.”

Culinary Union celebrates the end of their longest campaign

By Steve Sebelius | Sept. 19, 2024

“It says that unions make America strong,” [Acting Secretary Su] said. “You hear President Biden say it all the time, the middle-class built America and unions built the middle class. And now the workers here in the Venetian are going to be able to enjoy the benefits of having a real voice on the job, of being able to negotiate for their wages and health benefits, for how technology will be implemented in the workplace, to just really feel valued.”

For 14-year Venetian employee Carmen Vargas, who served on the negotiating committee that hammered out the new contract, it's not just better wages and good healthcare, but also the ability to buy a home.

U.S. Secretary of Labor celebrates all-union Las Vegas Strip with Culinary

By Dana Gentry | Sept. 19, 2024

“By supporting the right to organize, we’re seeing workers gain more power in the workplace,” she said, and that in turn is helping to drive “a record recovery from the pandemic and it’s creating more prosperity all around.” 

While billions of dollars pour into communities via the Biden administration’s Investing in America agenda, Su says she’s focused on “opportunity infrastructure” and connecting people from all walks of life with good jobs by eliminating obstacles such as lack of transportation or childcare.

WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary Julie Su and the U.S. Department of Labor paid tribute to nine labor unions representing nearly three million members, retirees and their families that have fought for workers’ rights for more than 100 years and inducted them on Sept. 17, 2024, into the department’s Century of Service Honor Roll of American Labor Organizations. 

The newest additions to the honor roll are the American Train Dispatchers Association; Fraternal Order of Police; International Association of Fire Fighters; International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers; National Alliance of Postal and Federal Employees; National Federation of Federal Employees; National Postal Mail Handlers Union; Service Employees International Union; and United Union of Roofers, Waterproofers and Allied Workers. 

“For over 100 years, these unions have made our communities strong by delivering the mail, keeping us safe, making sure our trains and planes are running, delivering federal services, caring for our loved ones, building our homes, and then protecting them from fires, and leading the charge for social, economic and racial justice,” said Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su. “The work done by these unions doesn’t just write a chapter in the story of labor. It is the spine of the book in a story that continues to be written.”

After the induction, Acting Secretary Su led a panel discussion on the labor movement’s future and how to build on worker equity to create a multiracial, multicultural, multilingual, multigenerational movement that benefits all workers. The discussion highlighted commitments unions have made at the national and local levels to foster a diverse workforce, including pledging to increase the percentage of women in the building trades and establish committees for underrepresented workers to involve them in their local union’s work. 

The panelists included the following union leaders: 

• AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler 
• AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Fred Redmond 
• Service Employees International Union President April Verrett 
• International Union of Painters and Allied Trades General Vice President Liz McElroy 
• United Brotherhood of Carpenters’ Sisters in the Brotherhood Director Sandra Rodriguez 

Watch a video featuring workers across America and their hopes for the future of the labor movement.

WASHINGTON – As part of its continued efforts to expand opportunities for all, the Biden-Harris administration has announced the “Investing in America and Investing in Americans” Executive Order to drive more federal dollars toward good-paying, safe jobs offering the right to organize and providing critical benefits like childcare.

President Biden made the announcement today in Michigan at a United Association union hall in Ann Arbor, joined by Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su and Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg.

“A good job is a job with security and benefits, where workers have the right to join a union, advocate for better working conditions, come home safe and healthy, and retire with dignity,” said Acting Secretary Julie Su. “This Executive Order again shows how the Biden-Harris administration is growing our economy by creating jobs that help all workers to get ahead, not just get by.”

The order continues the progress of the administration’s Investing in America agenda that is creating good jobs through generational investments in infrastructure, clean energy and manufacturing projects funded by the American Rescue Plan, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, CHIPS and Science Act, and Inflation Reduction Act.

The Executive Order builds upon the work of the department’s Good Jobs Initiative, which provides resources and tools to maximize the creation of good jobs through federal investments. Through the work of the department and nine agency partners, around $240 billion in federal projects are more likely to pay better wages, hire people of color and offer family-sustaining benefits like childcare, healthcare and transportation.

In addition to directing action by Good Jobs Initiative partners — including the departments of Labor, Transportation, Energy, Commerce, Interior, Education and Homeland Security, and the General Services Administration and Environmental Protection Agency - the Executive Order includes key investments by the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Using the administration’s whole-of-government approach, the order also creates a task force, chaired by Acting Secretary Su and White House National Economic Council Director Lael Brainard, to craft a long-term blueprint for federal investments that make good jobs a priority.

Learn more about the “Investing in America and Investing in Americans” Executive Order.

Learn more about the department’s Good Jobs initiative.

WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su issued the following statement on the August 2024 Employment Situation report: 

“The latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that the U.S. economy added 142,000 jobs in August, with the unemployment rate edging down to 4.2 percent. Earnings continue to rise, reflecting ongoing wage growth, and labor force participation remainsstrong, including an all-time historic high women’s prime age labor force participation rate. 

“What we’re seeing is a healthy, balanced economy that continues to deliver. Not only is the economy adding jobs, but we’re seeing more quality jobs - jobs that provide workers with stability and security. These jobs are more than a paycheck; they mean a safe workplace, the chance to build a future, and the ability to have a voice on the job, including the right to join a union. 

“President Biden’s new Executive Order to promote good jobs will continue to generate these kinds of opportunities - jobs that lift up workers, families and communities. This administration remains committed to ensuring America’s workforce thrives, and we’re building a foundation to sustain long-term growth and access to good jobs.” 

WASHINGTON – Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su issued the following statement to mark Labor Day 2024: 

“Each Labor Day, our nation honors the hardworking people whose dedication and sacrifice helped build this great nation. Workers who - with the support of organized labor - fought for fair wages and benefits, safer working conditions, and the dignity and respect every worker deserves. 

“The Biden-Harris administration knows America’s workers are our country’s backbone and the core that empowers the successes our nation has achieved. These are the people who fuel our economy, strengthen our communities and help ensure our security. 

“With the historic investments made since 2021, we are building our country’s future. Creating good jobs for all, especially those who have been left behind in the past. By expanding overtime protections, safeguarding retirement savings and benefit plans, and ensuring federal labor laws are enforced fairly, the Department of Labor is committed to building an economy that leads the world and gives everyone a chance to succeed. 

“On Labor Day - and every day - we will stand with, and support workers, ensuring they have the ability to thrive because as President Biden says proudly, ‘the middle class built America, and unions built the middle class.’ 

“On behalf of the Department of Labor, we wish you a happy, restful and safe holiday. Let’s continue working together to build a brighter, better future for all workers.”

WASHINGTON –Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su and Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro visited Virginia today to see how the Apprentice School in Newport News – one of the nation’s critical apprenticeship programs – is making construction of one of the world’s most capable and adaptable aircraft carriers, the PCU John F. Kennedy, possible.

During their visit, Secretaries Su and Del Toro highlighted their shared commitment to strengthening the Department of Defense’s organic and industrial base workforce. 

“Our partnership with the U.S. Navy will enhance the quality of jobs for workers who play an essential role in protecting our nation,” said Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su. “The Department of Labor is committed to making sure our Navy has the strongest, most diverse and skilled workforce needed to ensure military readiness and modernization.” 

The U.S. Navy and the Department of Labor have partnered to help advance Secretary Del Toro’s Maritime Statecraft Initiative and to create high-quality, good-paying jobs critical to national security, using practices included in the departments of Labor and Commerce’s Good Jobs Principles to fill the estimated 10,000 jobs needed per year over the next 10 years in the growing maritime industry. 

“The U.S. Navy’s investments in the highest possible job quality for its workforce will help to reinvigorate America’s comprehensive maritime power,” said Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro. “With skilled workers who represent the best of America, the defense industrial base and maritime ecosystem will continue to thrive with an ingenuity and dedication recognized around the world.” 

Good Jobs Principles seek to create broad, equitable access to good jobs and attract the most diverse pool of talent possible, by reaching into traditionally underserved populations and communities. By doing so, the departments of Labor and Defense intend to build the skilled, diverse and ready workforce needed to strengthen the U.S. Navy in an era of intense strategic competition.

As part of his Maritime Statecraft strategy, Secretary Del Toro is rallying organized labor as an essential stakeholder in ensuring America’s maritime power. Currently, the Navy is piloting a program to train experienced union welders to join a rotational expeditionary workforce that deploys to shipyards nationwide to support naval objectives. In October, the first class of 169 union welders will begin work on PCU John F. Kennedy at Newport News. 

In this joint effort, the departments will pursue the following key outcomes: 

• Expanded equitable workforce development pathways to good jobs through pre-apprenticeship and Registered Apprenticeship programs. 
• Broader active partnership with the Department of Labor’s Job Corps program. 
• Developed and expanded partnerships with agencies, including the department’s Employment and Training Administration, Veterans Employment and Training Service, and Women’s Bureau to advance to advance workforce development initiatives aligned with the Good Jobs Principles. 

Founded in 1919, the Apprentice School at Newport News Shipbuilding offers eight advanced programs of study and apprenticeships in 19 shipbuilding disciplines for terms from four to eight years. Offering apprentices the opportunity to earn college credit, receive competitive pay and benefits and learn a trade, the institution is accredited by the Commission of the Council on Occupational Education and registered with the Virginia Apprenticeship Council. The Apprentice School is a Department of Labor Apprenticeship Ambassador.