Washington, DC
July 11, 2023
Good morning, everyone! Thank you for that warm introduction, Britt. And thank you so much to our incredible partners at the National League of Cities.
To NLC President and Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards, your energy, passion, and belief in the power of mayors coming together is one of the driving forces behind this gathering. It’s an honor to work alongside you.
CEO and Executive Director Clarence Anthony: thank you for your vision, your leadership, and your commitment to our partnership. We would not be here today without both of you.
To all of the mayors and city leaders who have travelled from across the country for this kick off of the Good Jobs, Great Cities Academy:
Welcome to the Department of Labor.
This building is named in honor of Frances Perkins, the first woman Labor Secretary, the first woman to serve in the Cabinet of any President, and the longest-serving Labor Secretary ever. She was the architect of programs that generations of Americans have relied on for economic security and dignity, including a nationwide minimum wage, social security, unemployment insurance, and restrictions on child labor.
In short, Frances Perkins transformed the world for working people – not just for women, but for all workers. She is widely considered the most consequential Labor Secretary in history, and when she got the job, many people thought she couldn’t do it.
Her work is the embodiment of a theme I want to emphasize today:
That when people are given a chance – including to do work traditionally reserved for some – only for men, say; only for the most privileged among us; or people with four-year degrees – when we break down barriers that give those who are excluded an opportunity to do a job, it’s not only good for them… it’s good for everyone.
In other words, equity and excellence go hand in hand.
The stories, strategies, partnerships, and important work that will be the subject of this Good Jobs, Great Cities initiative will leave no doubt about that.
The work you’re doing here is not only creating opportunities for historically underserved and underrepresented working people. It is uplifting entire communities and reshaping our economy in exactly the way the President has asked us to do it: from the bottom up and the middle out.
So let me begin by saying thank you.
Thank you for being here today to create a network of support, to share your experiences with one another, and to learn more about the Department of Labor resources available to support you in achieving your community’s workforce priorities.
As you know, the Biden-Harris administration and this Department deeply value the relationships we’ve built with our state and local partners. Because, quite frankly, we know that federal-state-local partnerships are key to getting things done for the American people.
You’re on the front lines, every single day, dealing with local challenges, day in and day out, from public safety to potholes, and everything in between. Thanks to your leadership and your partnership with this administration, we’ve tackled many difficult issues in the last two and a half years, including rebuilding our economy from the economic catastrophe wrought by the pandemic.
Let’s look at what we’ve done together: 13.2 million jobs added to the economy since President Biden took office. For comparison, after the Great Recession of 2008, it took 10 years to get to this point in job creation.
Unemployment is at historic lows. You see it in your cities. It’s the longest period of such low unemployment since the 1960s. And it’s not just the overall average; unemployment is at historic lows for Black, Latino, and Asian workers.
The share of working-age Americans with jobs is the highest in over 20 years.
The labor force participation rate for working-age women is 77.8%. That’s the highest on record, since we started measuring that data over 75 years ago. An even more astounding feat when we recall how hard-hit women were by COVID, which exposed the fragility of a society without paid leave and affordable child care. Today, women are powering our historic recovery.
And President Biden has worked with Congress to make historic federal investments in America’s industries. This is what investing in America looks like.
We’ve all used words like historic and unprecedented a lot in the last few years, and sometimes these words start to lose their meaning. So let’s put the current investments into context.
The federal investment in infrastructure alone is more than the investments made under the Eisenhower administration when the National Highway System of this country was built.
The CHIPs and Science Act bets on America’s ability to innovate to the tune of more federal investments than were made when President Kennedy challenged the country to put a man on the moon. And this time it ain’t just going to be men.
And the federal investment to combat the climate crisis and protect our environment, well, it’s simply unprecedented.
We have never in our history seen such investments before.
And we in this room know these investments are not just going to deliver new roads, safe bridges, electric vehicle charging stations coast to coast, affordable reliable internet in every home and clean drinking water out of every faucet.
Each of these investments is also an opportunity to create good jobs across the country.
Here at the Department of Labor, good jobs is our North Star, and we are laser focused on connecting workers to these good jobs, including workers who have been left out in the past.
Now, you all know that good jobs don’t just happen by accident. We have to be intentional about that. We also know that equity doesn’t happen by accident.
The President has called this America’s infrastructure decade. I think of workforce development as infrastructure too.
The question of “How will we have the people to do these jobs?” Every one of you is facing this challenge in your cities. And that’s because our workforce system, like physical roads and bridges, needs some attention, it has some cracks, and potholes. Disinvestment in some communities for years means the workforce system doesn’t connect to every community like it should.
We are here to build our workforce system infrastructure because it has to be as strong as our physical infrastructure.
And that’s what the Good Jobs Great Cities Academy is all about.
You are here today, chosen among a large number of cities who expressed interest in this effort, because you are the innovators we need on the ground. You are leading a city-by-city revolution to build an inclusive, effective workforce infrastructure across the country that will fulfill the promise of good jobs for all.
At the Department of Labor, we know that a good job depends on good pay. But it’s not just about good pay. A good job also means health benefits, safe working conditions, and opportunities for career advancement. It means security in retirement – and as the president often says, some breathing room. A good job means diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. A good job means having a voice on the job, and a seat at the table, the right to form a union. And a good job means taking care of your family, learning skills that are transferable across sectors, and helping to lift up your community in the process.
In short, good jobs change lives, and they change communities and cities, for the better.
Just as importantly, we’ve got to make sure that every community – including those communities that have historically been shut out from these opportunities – gets equitable access to the good jobs we create. A good job should be available in every community, not just in some.
Since President Biden took office, the administration has been laser-focused on advancing programs that help those who have traditionally been left out or left behind in the past.
For me, this starts with ensuring equity for Black workers, who face some of the greatest inequities in the workforce system, by almost every measure—by pay, access to opportunity, occupational segregation, and wealth. This tells us that the workforce system needs to do more and be more intentional about connecting Black workers to employment and good jobs.
There are many untapped sources of talent in our communities, including those without college degrees, immigrant workers, people in rural communities, people coming out of the justice system, veterans, people of color, women, and workers with disabilities—effective workforce programs understand that filling jobs means creating opportunities for all of this talent.
The Good Jobs Great Cities Academy was born out of these challenges and the incredible opportunities we have in this moment.
We knew that to deliver on the promise of manufacturing, infrastructure, and clean energy in America, a partnership between the Department of Labor and America’s most innovative cities was the path forward.
We know that this moment requires all hands on deck, so our workforce investments have prioritized partnerships on the ground – partnerships between labor unions, workforce development organizations, community-based organizations, and employers to come together in developing a diverse, skilled workforce.
Later this week, the Department of Labor is going to launch a “High Road to the Middle Class” map – a tool that will spotlight some of the existing High-Road Training Programs across the country, which will train America’s infrastructure, clean energy, and manufacturing workforce for the good jobs created by President Biden’s Investing in America agenda.
The map will include over 2,400 high road training programs that are currently operating in communities across the country and will be updated regularly as an evolving resource to help stakeholders fill gaps in our workforce pipeline and connect folks to good jobs.
I know that the work of this Department – and of the Good Jobs, Great Cities initiative – can only succeed when we listen to and lean on local leaders, like each of you. You know the needs of your employers, your workforces, and your communities better than anyone. A one size fits all approach does not work. That’s why you’re here today.
It’s often said that cities are laboratories of innovation. Our hope is that the Good Jobs, Great Cities Academy gives you a space to share, learn from one another, take advantage of the intensive support and assistance from my team, and show what is possible.
Now, it’s my honor to introduce someone who needs no introduction. We’re so lucky to have her here with us today: Neera Tanden, who currently serves as President Biden’s Domestic Policy Advisor, and has previously served in both the Obama and Clinton administrations.
For decades, she’s had a hand in crafting innovative solutions to confront the most challenging crises our country has faced. She has been instrumental in shaping some of the most bold and transformational legislation of our lifetimes, including the Affordable Care Act. She is a friend to the Department of Labor and, I’m grateful to say, a personal friend.
Neera, thank you so much for joining us today. I’ll turn it over to you now.