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Goodwill Industries Lobbies for a Diverse and Skilled Workforce

Goodwill Holds Inaugural Advocacy Day on October 24

October 22, 2007

Rockville, MD – More than 60 Goodwill representatives from across the United States will gather on Capitol Hill on October 24 to advocate on behalf of people with disabilities, low-wage workers and other job seekers who are trying to enter the workforce for the first time or advance their careers. 

“The U.S. is facing a shortage of skilled workers, and hundreds of thousands of people are either unemployed or under-employed,” says George W. Kessinger, President and CEO of Goodwill Industries International.  “It’s time for Congress to invest in the American worker and focus on policies that will help people find and keep good jobs and move up the career ladder.” 

Goodwill will offer recommendations to Congress on several important pieces of legislation, including:

* Reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998:  Goodwill urges Congress to affirm the importance of a universally accessible system of one-stop career centers that meets the needs of both workers and business. Congress should prioritize access for individuals with disabilities, the chronically unemployed, welfare recipients and those with limited English proficiency, and support training programs that provide opportunities for low-wage workers and those with disabilities to move up the career ladder.

* Second Chance Act:  Goodwill supports passage of the Second Chance Act, which would help reduce criminal recidivism by allocating the necessary funds to support such services as job training, the development of healthy child-parent relationships, substance abuse treatment, and services for both physical and mental illness.
 
* AbilityOne (formerly know as Javits-Wagner-O’Day or JWOD Act):  The AbilityOne program is the largest provider of employment opportunities for those who are either blind or have severe disabilities, employing nearly 45,000 people through more than 600 nonprofit agencies.  Through AbilityOne, the nonprofit agencies provide a broad range of commercial services to the federal government, such as document management, food service and janitorial.  Goodwill believes Congress should increase employment and choice of employment settings within the AbilityOne program; promote, encourage, and develop procurement opportunities through which more jobs are created; and ensure compliance and integrity within the program.

* IRA Savings Legislation (H.R. 3696):  Goodwill calls on Congress to modify the nation’s disability policies to exclude 401(k) and IRA retirement accounts from federally funded means-tested benefits, so that all Americans, including people with disabilities, can pursue a path to self-sufficiency and financial independence.

“Goodwill’s goal is to ensure that Congress provides proper funding and creates incentives to ensure that our workforce development system is responsive to the diverse needs of people who want to work,” says Kessinger.  “We need policies that recognize the social and financial benefits of moving people off public assistance, into good jobs and toward financial independence.”

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