WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh issued the following statement on the February 2022 Employment Situation Report:

“Today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the American economy added 678,000 jobs in the month of February, and the unemployment rate was 3.8 percent, down from 4.0 percent in January. This powerful job growth continues the Biden-Harris administration’s historic, worker-centered recovery.

With over seven million jobs added since the President took office, we now have recovered more than 90 percent of the jobs lost at the onset of the pandemic. Last month’s job growth was widespread across the private sector, with notable gains for hard-hit leisure and hospitality businesses. In addition, workers with less than a high-school diploma have the lowest unemployment rate on record since BLS began tracking this data in 1992.

“Working people are empowered by this recovery to seek better opportunities, and at the Department of Labor we are working through our Good Jobs Initiative to improve job quality, job access, and job equity across the economy. We are expanding our work with government partners and private-sector employers to strengthen supply chains, create more equitable pathways into good jobs, and increase workers’ wages and bargaining power. With the administration’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law beginning to invest in communities across the country, we have the opportunity to create many more good jobs and make sure that they are accessible to all workers.”

WASHINGTON – Earlier today, Deputy Secretary of Labor Julie Su hosted an online listening session with members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters to discuss strategies for improving trucking job quality, and for retaining and recruiting drivers.

The discussion follows the recent announcement of a partnership between the departments of Labor and Transportation as part of the Driving Good Jobs Initiative. The partnership includes a series of listening sessions to engage drivers, unions and other trucking industry stakeholders to improve labor standards and ensure that the concerns of workers are heard and addressed. These efforts align with the Biden-Harris administration’s Trucking Action Plan.

“Truck drivers from across the country who are members of The International Brotherhood of Teamsters – the nation’s largest private-sector union for truck drivers and related industries – provided us with invaluable insight about the importance of ensuring truck drivers receive family-sustaining wages and benefits, work in safe and healthy working conditions, have a voice in the workplace, and access to training opportunities,” said Deputy Secretary of Labor Julie Su. “The Driving Good Jobs Initiative offers us a roadmap as we work with trucking industry stakeholders to implement ‘high road’ employment practices, including collective bargaining, to meet the industry’s critical workforce needs.”

Topics discussed during today’s session included the misclassification of drivers as independent contractors, better compensation for drivers, support for collective bargaining and enhanced industry training and safety standards. Stakeholders emphasized the importance of addressing racial and gender inequities in the industry, and increasing outreach to drivers of color and women, with a focus on personal safety to attract more women to the industry.

Read more about the International Brotherhood of the Teamsters.

WASHINGTON – Today, Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh and Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg announced a partnership with the American Trucking Associations – the largest national trade association for the trucking industry – to join the Biden-Harris administration’s 90-Day Trucking Apprenticeship Challenge and launch Registered Apprenticeships as a route toward getting more well-trained drivers on the road in good-paying jobs.

The announcement follows a meeting with the associations’ Chairman Harold Sumerford Jr.; President and CEO Chris Spear; and other industry leaders and stakeholders at the U.S. Department of Labor’s headquarters.

The association announced the start of its national Registered Apprenticeship program for truck drivers designed to enhance industry training and safety standards, and support the recruitment and retention of drivers in good trucking jobs. This new program will drive adoption of Registered Apprenticeship across the association’s employer membership expanding access to high-quality, earn-as-you-learn training for more workers that connects them to good jobs, and strengthens the nation’s supply chains while expanding the economy.

“We appreciate the American Trucking Associations joining the effort to expand Registered Apprenticeships to meet the needs of the nation’s employers while connecting workers to good-paying jobs and a path to middle-class wages and opportunities,” said Secretary Marty Walsh. “What I love about Registered Apprenticeship is that it is a partnership. When employers and industry step up, we are ready to partner and support them to adopt this high-road training model to meet their critical workforce needs,” he added.

“Drivers throughout the country have spoken with me about the rewards and the challenges of this career, and it’s clear we need to do more to build and support the trucking workforce. The Biden-Harris administration is working with the trucking industry and drivers to quickly launch registered apprenticeship programs that provide high-quality paid job training, reduce debt for drivers, and increase the number of drivers who stay in the job,” said Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “This will make things easier for drivers and for the millions of American households that count on their essential work,” he added.

Learn more about the Biden-Harris administration’s Trucking Action Plan.

Learn more about Registered Apprenticeships programs.

Read more about the American Trucking Associations.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a grant program to strengthen, modernize, expand and diversify its Registered Apprenticeship Program to enable more workers to earn while they learn and find reliable pathways to the middle class.

Part of President Biden's ongoing strategy to strengthen Registered Apprenticeships, the department's "Apprenticeship Building America" program will make $113 million in grant funding available, including up to $50 million to support equity partnerships and pre-apprenticeship activities to increase enrollment in Registered Apprenticeship Programs. The grants will further the Biden-Harris administration's goals and priorities for a strong and equitable post-pandemic economic recovery by connecting Americans to good quality jobs in priority industry sectors, including critical supply chain industries and among populations disproportionately affected by the pandemic.

"For a young person starting their career or someone seeking a career change, Registered Apprenticeships provide equitable pathways to the middle class," said U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh. "This earn-as-you-learn model is helping to grow our economy and supports the Biden-Harris administration's strategy to ensure marginalized populations access to good jobs, a key to a successful and equitable recovery."

"The Apprenticeship Building America grant program will support the Department of Labor's efforts to empower workers – morning, noon and night – advance racial equity, give workers at-risk of exploitation a path to a good job and provide workers with access to health care and secure retirements throughout their careers," Secretary Walsh added.

Using a coordinated national investment strategy, the Apprenticeship Building America grant program will strengthen and modernize the RAP system, increase equity and accessibility in program delivery to apprentices, bring the Registered Apprenticeship model to more industries, and improve RAP completion rates for under-represented populations and underserved communities.

Apprenticeship Building America program grant recipients will work with various partners to support and develop the Registered Apprenticeship ecosystem. These partnerships will include:

• State apprenticeship system building and modernization.
• Expansion of Registered Apprenticeship Program opportunities for youth.
• Ensuring equitable Registered Apprenticeship Program pathways through pre-apprenticeship leading to RAP enrollment and equity partnerships.
• Registered Apprenticeship hubs.

Eligible applicants include nonprofits, labor organizations, public and state institutions of higher education, and county governments. Additional eligibility requirements will be included. Finalists will receive awards from $1 to $8 million.

Read more about the department's broader efforts to connect career seekers with apprenticeship opportunities and expand apprenticeship into new sectors and industries.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh issued the following statement on the International Labour Organization’s Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations report:

“The International Labour Organization on Wednesday shined a spotlight on the serious situation and human rights abuses taking place in Xinjiang, China. The ILO’s Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations, in its annual report on countries’ compliance with international labor standards, expressed “deep concern” regarding the People’s Republic of China’s policies towards the Uyghur and other mostly Muslim minorities in Chinas far western Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.

“The Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations requested that the PRC’s government take steps to promote equal employment opportunity and treatment without discrimination based on race, national extraction, religion or political opinion; and revise national and regional polices that use vocational training and rehabilitation centers for political re-education based on administrative detention. 

“The Department of Labor calls on the PRC to take the steps requested by the Committee of Experts, and to end its abuses of the predominantly Muslim Uyghurs and members of other ethnic and religious minority groups in Xinjiang, as well as its use of these groups for forced labor in Xinjiang and beyond.

“The Department of Labor is committed to empowering workers at home and abroad, including by uncovering and combating forced labor in all its forms. Our reporting on forced labor identified ten products made with forced labor in Xinjiang, including cotton, textiles, tomatoes, hair products and polysilicon. Many trusted sources confirm that the People’s Republic has arbitrarily detained more than one million Uyghurs and other mostly Muslim minorities in Xinjiang. An estimated 100,000 Uyghurs and other ethnic minority ex-detainees in China may be working in conditions of forced labor following detention in re-education camps.”

View the ILO’s Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations.

Read the department’s Bureau of International Labor Affairs reporting on forced labor in Xinjiang.

WASHINGTON – The White House Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment today released its report which details nearly 70 recommendations – approved by President Biden – that promote worker organizing and collective bargaining for public and private sector employees.  

Comprised of more than 20 participant agencies, offices and White House components, the White House Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment is tasked with identifying executive branch policies, practices and programs that could be used – consistent with applicable law – to promote the Biden-Harris administration’s policy of support for worker power, worker organizing and collective bargaining.

The U.S. Department of Labor will work across agencies to implement the task force’s recommendations, including the following:

• Ensuring workers know their organizing and bargaining rights.
• Protecting workers who face illegal retaliation when they organize and stand up for workplace rights.
• Establishing a resource center on unions and collective bargaining.
• Shedding light on employer’s use of anti-union consultants.
• Collecting and reporting more information on unions and their role in the U.S. economy.
• Advancing equity across underserved communities by supporting worker organizing and collective bargaining.

“The U.S. Department of Labor will play a critical role in helping the White House Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment to achieve its mission. Workers today are demanding more from their jobs, and we know the freedom to exercise their right to collective bargaining is a key component of our efforts to improve working conditions across the economy,” said Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh.

“The report’s recommendations put the federal government’s policy of encouraging worker organizing and collective bargaining front and center, and empowers workers to build a stronger economy and better quality of life for them and their families,” the Secretary added.

On April 26, 2021, President Biden issued an Executive Order on Worker Organizing and Empowerment that established the task force and appointed Vice President Kamala Harris to serve as its Chair and Secretary Walsh – a longtime trade union member and leader – as Vice Chair.

The task force’s recommendations position the federal government to be a model actor by activating federal authority to support worker empowerment. The task force will submit its second report in six months.

Read the White House Task Force on Worker Organizing and Empowerment Workers’ full report.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh issued the following statement on the January 2022 Employment Situation Report:

“Today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the American economy added 467,000 jobs in the month of January, and the unemployment rate was 4.0 percent, not significantly changed from December. The Biden-Harris Administration’s historic, worker-centered recovery continued despite the impact of the Omicron variant, a testament to policies that have provided workers and employers with the tools they need to increase resilience across our economy. The new data shows that the economy added a record 6.6 million jobs in President Biden’s first year in office, and an average of 541,000 new jobs per month over the last three months. With labor force participation up over the year and long-term unemployment continuing to decline, America is getting back to work.

“At the Department of Labor, we are focused on empowering all workers to seize the better opportunities they are seeking in this recovery. While the Black unemployment rate went down in January, it remains approximately double the white unemployment rate, and too many workers still lack access to paid time off to heal from illness or care for family members. The President’s Build Back Better proposals for paid leave, access to job training, and lower costs of care for working families are important, not only to help those workers but also to keep building a more resilient and competitive economy. And as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law invests in communities across America, we are proud to lead the administration’s Good Jobs Initiative, a focused effort to create good jobs and equitable access to those jobs throughout our economy.”

WASHINGTON – From Feb. 1 through Feb. 2, approximately 5,400 workers – nearly 90 percent of eligible workers – cast votes in an historic election at the General Motors’ facility in Silao, Mexico, to determine which of the four unions on the ballot will exercise collective bargaining rights.

The new Federal Center for Conciliation and Labor Registration, which oversaw the election, today announced that preliminary results show the National Independent Auto Workers’ Union, a new union known by its Spanish acronym, SINTTIA, received more than 4,000 votes. The Federal Center expects to certify results soon.

Experts from Mexico’s National Electoral Institute and Human Rights Commission observed the vote, as did several external observers from academic and labor rights organizations.

“As workers, we are stronger when we can speak with one voice – and we are stronger when our fellow workers around the world can do the same,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh. “The work of defending freedom of association never stops, but this historic election shows us that we can make progress toward the right of all workers to associate freely when we work together.”

The election is seen as a positive step forward after a worker rights’ action was first brought under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

“This election at the Silao General Motors’ plant represents a landmark achievement for the newly created Federal Center in ensuring a free and fair election for workers under Mexico’s new labor justice system,” said Deputy Undersecretary for International Affairs Thea M. Lee. “The Federal Center’s administration of this election helped to ensure a fair and transparent process.” 

In July 2021, the U.S. and Mexico announced an unprecedented comprehensive plan to remediate a past denial of the rights of freedom of association and collective bargaining rights for workers at the same facility under the USMCA. 

The course of remediation stemmed from a request for review submitted in May 2021 by the U.S. government under the USMCA rapid response mechanism concerning events related to an April 2021 vote by workers at the facility on whether to approve their collective bargaining agreement. In August 2021, workers rejected the collective bargaining agreement in a free and fair vote. Although the course of remediation officially concluded in September 2021, the U.S. and Mexico remained vigilant, monitoring the conditions on the ground leading up to this month’s vote to ensure that workers would once again be able to exercise their voting rights without interference.   

Learn more about the department’s international work.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor – in collaboration with the Departments of the Treasury, State, Commerce, Homeland Security and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative – today issued a Burma Business Advisory highlighting the risks of doing business due to corruption, illicit finance and human rights abuses.

Since a February 2021 coup, the Burmese military has reportedly killed more than 1,400 people, unjustly arrested civilian leaders, and committed widespread grave human rights abuses against the Burmese people. Notably, the military regime has targeted the country’s labor union movement, outlawing 16 labor unions, attacking striking workers, and arresting many union leaders and members.

The military regime has also facilitated corruption, which exposes businesses and individuals involved in operations or supply chains tied to the regime to significant reputational, financial and legal risks.

“The Burmese military have relentlessly attacked and arrested union leaders and members. These actions are unacceptable,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh. “The Burma Business Advisory serves to remind all businesses and individuals to consider the serious risks of doing business there, and ensure they do not directly or indirectly support the country’s military junta. By making labor exploitation unprofitable to the regime, governments around the world and the business community can stand in opposition to the military’s repression, while keeping goods produced by child and forced labor out of our supply chains.”

The “List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor” and “List of Products Produced by Forced or Indentured Child Labor” published by the department’s Bureau of International Labor Affairs concludes that evidence exists that 14 goods are produced in Burma using child labor, forced labor and/or forced child labor. Evidence also exists that state-owned enterprises in Burma are involved significantly in industries tied to human trafficking, child and forced labor, and the targeting of labor unions.

In 2020, ILAB’s “Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor” report found no advancement by Burma to combat child labor and, in fact, the reports finds the country is complicit in the use of forced child labor in more than isolated incidents. Recent reports say the Burmese military continues to force civilians and children to work in conflict areas, including Rahkine State, home to the country’s Rohingya minority.

Learn more about the department’s international work.

WASHINGTON – Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh unveiled the Department of Labor’s “Good Jobs” initiative, a coordinated effort by Biden-Harris administration to improve job quality nationwide, during a speech today at the U.S. Conference of Mayors’ 90th Winter Meeting in Washington, D.C.

In remarks, Secretary Walsh addressed labor dynamics, including explaining the underlying factors driving workers across the country to seek out better work opportunities. “This is not a trend spread evenly across our economy. High quit rates are concentrated in industries with the lowest wages; the highest exposure to COVID; and workers who are disproportionately women, people of color, and immigrants,” said Secretary Walsh. “It’s an issue of job quality and it’s an issue of equity.” 

Walsh touted the department’s “Good Jobs” initiative as a way for the department to partner with other governments, including mayors, and private employers to improve job quality and address the needs of workers. “You know the needs in your community. You know your employers and your workforce. We can be the bridge to help you create good jobs. That’s going to help you grow your local economies, and it’s going to help our nation meet this moment,” the Secretary said.

Since being sworn in 10 months ago, Secretary Walsh has visited more than 30 U.S. states and 60 cities as Secretary, giving him a unique perspective on the issues facing America’s mayors. Today’s remarks also included his views on the state of labor dynamics in America, and comments on topics such as public safety, climate change, affordable housing and economic mobility.

The following media is available of the Secretary’s keynote address:

Photos:           Secretary Walsh addresses the U.S. Conference of Mayor’s 90th Winter Meeting

Video clip:      Secretary Walsh announces the Good Jobs initiative.

Video clip:      Secretary Walsh reflects on department’s progress in 2021.

Video clip:      Secretary Walsh’s full keynote address.

Transcript:      Text of Secretary’s keynote address (as prepared for delivery).