SEIU has endorsed Community-Based Health Care Retraining Act legislation reintroduced by Senator Russ Feingold (D-Wis.). The new version of the bill, formerly introduced in 2004, 2005 and 2007, would establish a program to distribute grants to colleges and other institution to retrain workers in communities with high unemployment to take jobs in healthcare.
From Modern Healthcare:
The bill would commit a total of $25 million through workforce boards in areas that have high unemployment rates from manufacturing job losses, and also have a shortage of qualified healthcare workers. Unlike past versions, the new bill would also apply to retraining existing healthcare workers.Legislation to put unemployed folks back to work couldn't come at a better time, as the Labor Department reported today that the unemployment rate has increased to 9.4 percent from 8.9 percent in April--with nearly 50 percent of May's job losses coming from the manufacturing sector. The key to moving past the recession will be improving the employment situation, so investing in areas that have been hit especially hard is just good policy.
