House Education and the Workforce Committee Chairman John Kline (R-MN), along with Workforce Protections Subcommittee Chairman Tim Walberg (R-MI) and Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions Subcommittee Chairman Phil Roe, M.D. (R-TN) today sent a letter to Labor Secretary Hilda Solis requesting documents and communications related to the development of controversial guidance concerning sequestrati... Read more »
Dear Secretary Solis: We are greatly concerned the Employment and Training Administration’s (ETA) July 30, 2012, Training and Employment Guidance Letter (the guidance) is misleading and incomplete with respect to federal contractors’ obligations under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN Act) and the department’s role in enforcing the act. In short, the department creates th... Read more »
What if we knew how to reduce by half the number of Americans dependent on welfare? What if we could — at the same time — significantly reduce poverty among children and single mothers? If we had such an effective poverty-fighting formula in place, surely we’d try to expand it, not toss it aside. Yet that’s what the administration has just done with the successful welfare reform of 1996. On July ... Read more »
Dear Secretary Solis, We respectfully request information concerning the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs’ (OFCCP) December 9, 2011 notice of proposed rulemaking (the proposed rule) on federal contractors’ nondiscrimination and affirmative action requirements pertaining to individuals with disabilities under Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 503). Specifically, ... Read more »
U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce Chairman John Kline (R-MN) issued the following statement after a federal court decision to block the Obama administration’s contraception mandate: Religious liberty is a fundamental human right protected by the First Amendment. Private employers should never be forced to pay for services that violate their moral beliefs. Today’s federal court de... Read more »
Dear Mr. Dodaro: The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently reported the federal government spent more than $3 billion on more than 200 federally funded science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education programs across 13 federal agencies in fiscal year 2011. While it is important to have a prepared and appropriately targeted STEM workforce to enhance U.S. competitivenes... Read more »
The Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions, chaired by Rep. Phil Roe (R-TN), today held a hearing entitled, “Examining Proposals to Strengthen the National Labor Relations Act.” The hearing reviewed decisions by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) affecting secret ballot elections, employee compensation, and tribal sovereignty, as well as legislative proposals that would enh... Read more »
House Education and the Workforce Committee Republicans showed their support for family farms by urging their colleagues to vote ‘yes’ on Rep. Tom Latham's (R-IA) Preserving America’s Family Farms Act (H.R. 4157). The legislation, which was approved by the House of Representatives with bipartisan support, will protect opportunities for young people to work on family farms by prohibiting the Depart... Read more »
Over the last year, this committee has taken action on numerous occasions to defend the rights of workers and employers from the harmful agenda of the National Labor Relations Board. Most notably, we have passed legislation that would prohibit the NLRB from dictating the location of American businesses and advanced a bill that would preserve long-standing union election procedures that protect emp... Read more »
The Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education, chaired by Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA), today held a hearing entitled, “Education Reforms: Discussing the Value of Alternative Teacher Certification Programs.” During the hearing, witnesses and members discussed ways outdated federal policies such as “Highly Qualified Teacher” requirements can hamper schools’ ability to hire t... Read more »
