Miami, FL
September 13, 2023
Thank you for that warm introduction. Let me take a moment to recognize Rachel [Torres, Job Corps Administrator and National Director]. Thank you for your tremendous efforts here and across the country
I also want to thank Mayor [Daniella] Levine-Cava, Mayor [Rodney] Harris, and County Chairman Oliver Gilbert for your leadership and partnership in advancing workforce development. We at the Department of Labor depend on local leaders like you across the country to help us create more pathways to opportunity for all workers…
Today is a great example of a federal-local partnership done right, so thank you.
And of course – a huge thank you to the workers, unions, Job Corps students, and labor leaders who are making this work possible, especially all of our friends at IUPAT [International Union of Painters and Allied Trades].
I’m so honored to help launch this pre-apprenticeship program. Now, I promise you, I’m going to cut this ribbon very soon. But first, I want to say a word about why this program is so important.
Today, we’re not only cutting a ribbon to a workforce training program. We’re also opening a door to new opportunities for so many young people here. When you walk through that door, you’ll get what you need to prepare for these opportunities. And on the other side of that door are good jobs and careers.
Now, as we speak, President Biden’s Investing in America agenda is delivering new roads and safer bridges to every corner of the country.
These projects are also an opportunity to create good union jobs – here in Miami, and in every community.
At the Department of Labor, our North Star is connecting all workers to the good union jobs we’re creating, including those who have been historically left out or left behind.
To do that – to fill these good jobs – we’ve got to keep investing in our workforce development infrastructure. Because the workforce system is infrastructure too – the roads and bridges that connect workers to the good jobs they want and need and employers to the people they want and need.
But our workforce system – just like our physical roads and bridges – it needs some attention too. It’s got some cracks and some potholes. And it doesn’t connect to every community and to every worker the way it should. I’m thinking of women workers, workers of color, immigrant workers, Black workers, those without a four-year degree, and more.
But under President Biden’s leadership, we’re creating a workforce system infrastructure that’s going to be as strong as the physical infrastructure we’re building.
Because we need infrastructure that creates good jobs. And we also need a skilled workforce ready to do those jobs the moment the shovel hits the ground.
Now, more than ever, we need to strengthen and diversify the pipeline into good union jobs through proven strategies like pre-apprenticeship.
These programs offer a direct pathway to Registered Apprenticeships, one of the most powerful tools we have to get folks a secure place in the middle class. They’ve got a track record of lifting people up from low-quality jobs into good careers and meaningful employment.
The fact is, employers need talent to fill these jobs, and our country must tap into all communities to deliver that talent. But historically, we haven’t given all our workers the training they need and the opportunities they deserve.
Now, for the first time in our history, we have the chance to lift up workers in every community. That’s why these workforce investments are as critical as any piece of physical infrastructure. It’s about bringing equity to our economy and making it stronger and more resilient moving forward.
Now, I’m proud that Job Corps offers nearly 400 pre-apprenticeship training programs across the country. And more than 4,300 Job Corps students were enrolled in pre-apprenticeship training programs during the previous program year.
This particular glazing program is offered at only four Job Corps campuses. And we are so grateful to IUPAT for helping us bring glazing to Miami.
And I’m excited to see so many Miami Job Corps students here. Because we need you. America’s workforce needs you. That’s why we’re here today. That’s why we’re investing in your future.
Right now, this administration is kicking off an infrastructure decade that calls for a generational investment in America’s workforce, with training programs like this that are tailored for young people.
And these investments are opening up new pathways to the middle class and to good union jobs for the young people all across our Job Corps Centers.
That’s why Job Corps is a critical piece of our workforce development strategy. At the Department of Labor, we want Job Corps to be the infrastructure academy of the United States. And we’re moving one step closer to that goal here today in Miami.
So I want to close with a pledge—and with a call to action. I’m pledging to you that this administration is going to continue supporting and investing in this work. And I’m calling on all of us to continue being relentless in our partnership.
We need even more partnership with Mayors and local leaders. We need more partnership with unions. I would like to see a union presence at every Job Corps center, just like here. And we need more partnerships around pre-apprenticeships in the Job Corps system.
Many of the folks here are the current and future partners I’m talking about. We are so grateful to you. From the bottom of my heart: thank you for all you do.
Now, let’s cut this ribbon – and open a new door to opportunity for young people in Miami.