Goodwill® agencies around the country have joined the efforts to promote October as National Disability Employment Awareness Month. As the month comes to an end, you have the opportunity to continue to support the rights of people with disabilities by urging your Senator to support the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).
READ MORE from Act Now to Support the Rights of People with Disabilities
Once again, Congressional leaders have reached a temporary last-minute deal to avert economic Armageddon. In other words, with Congress punting the ball, the game has been extended into another overtime period. While the media’s focus on these political dramas appears like bad reality TV, the real-world realities are felt in local communities served by Goodwill® agencies. From employment opportunities for people with significant disabilities, veterans services, low-income housing, income tax assistance programs and more, local Goodwill agencies, their employees, and the people Goodwill serves are experiencing the pinch caused by the recent government shutdown.
READ MORE from Congress Averts Economic Armageddon, but Shutdown Impacts Felt by Communities
Four days in, the government shutdown has resulted in heavy political posturing and little hope for a solution. In addition, the debt ceiling will soon be reached, adding yet another layer to a bitterly partisan fiscal fight. Clearly, these are difficult times. The optimist in me hopes that the current impasse will prove to be our leaders’ rock-bottom moment. Perhaps the self-inflicted damage caused by the shutdown, and God forbid, debt default would serve to show the brinksmen on both side of the aisle their error in putting politics in front of policy.
READ MORE from People and Communities Remain Offstage in Shutdown’s Political Theater
Once again, the country watches as the government risks having to shut its doors and default on the debt because Congress can’t seem to do it any other way. These dual events of autumn have become so familiar that they seem more usual than not.
READ MORE from It’s Business as (Un)usual when It Comes to the Budget
Once again, the country watches as the government risks having to shut its doors and default on the debt because Congress can’t seem to do it any other way. These dual events of autumn have become so familiar that they seem more usual than not.
READ MORE from It's Business as (Un)usual when It Comes to the Budget
When the Internet was invented, few had any idea what its full potential could be. Today, of course, we reap benefits that even a few years ago seemed like science fiction. With the rise of e-commerce and treasuries leaning as a result of the recession, many policymakers are eyeing Internet sales as a tempting revenue source. In fact, Congress is now considering whether it’s not enough that you pay sales tax in the state you live in, but also whether you should be taxed when you buy something over the Internet.
READ MORE from Will Internet Sales Tax Reach into Your Pocket?
Congress’s plate of must do legislation is full as we head into the fall. Spending bills, debt limit increases, and resolutions on Syria, are big bites to swallow in the short time between now and the end of the year. A number of other issues, pending decisions in Washington, will have real impact on many
READ MORE from Action or Inaction in Congress Will Impact the Lives of People Goodwill® Serves
A recent column, “Building America’s Workforce,” appeared in a publication commonly read by Congressional members and staff alike. The author, Thomas Hilliard, a senior fellow in workforce development policy at the Center for an Urban Future, discusses the pressures that obstruct our nation's job training system from producing a workforce with the skills that businesses need to compete in the global economy. These pressures include the skills gap; a disjointed, multi-piece skills-building system; and underfunding.
READ MORE from Building a Skilled Workforce Is Crucial to Economic Recovery
As discussed in last week’s blog, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee recently cleared legislation (S. 1356) that would reauthorize federal investments in the nation’s core job training programs. With the House having passed its Workforce Investment Act (WIA) reauthorization bill on March 15, the HELP Committee’s action sets a new high-water mark in the decade-long effort to pass a reauthorization bill. Yet two significant obstacles remain before final passage.
READ MORE from Tea Leaves Reveal Significant Obstacles for Job Training Bill
Yesterday, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee voted 18-3 to advance bipartisan legislation (S. 1356) to reauthorize the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). WIA was enacted in 1998, and has not since been reauthorized. As a result, the law is long overdue for an update. Goodwill supports the bill as written and is urging the Senate to quickly bring the bill to the Senate floor.
News of the newest addition to Britain’s royal family has been the most anticipated event since we wondered who shot JR. This week, we learned of yet another much anticipated, if somewhat less newsworthy, event—the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee’s plan to consider the reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act of 2013 (WIA) – S.1356 — next week.
READ MORE from Senate Committee Vote on WIA Expected Next Week
In recent years, the pool of resources for human services, including job training, has been steadily evaporating despite increased need. In the case of job training, federal funding for job training has steadily eroded over the last decade. Since 2002, funding for the Workforce Investment Act's (WIA) core funding streams has declined by $1 billion — more than 25 percent. Meanwhile unemployment was 5.8 percent in 2002, compared to 8.1 percent in 2012. As a result practitioners are asking themselves, “How do we do more with less?”
