Category: Advocate

Action is needed to prevent Congress from drastically cutting funding for job training programs that support Goodwill’s efforts to help people with employment challenges in your community to find jobs and advance in careers. Send a letter to your members of Congress and ask them to support the Senate version of the FY 2012 spending bill that funds the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education.

READ MORE from Stand with Goodwill® in Supporting Funding for Job Training Programs

On Tuesday, October 25, President Obama announced two executive actions that aim to help veterans find jobs. Goodwill® commends efforts to create more jobs for service members, veterans and their families in light of the continuing challenges this population faces in transitioning to the civilian workforce, and plans to release a white paper next month to help stakeholders understand the current employment situation and support systems for this population.

READ MORE from Finding Jobs for Veterans Is a High Priority for White House, Goodwill®

One week after President Obama’s American Jobs Act (S 1660) was blocked in the Senate, Democratic leaders have been working to dissect and move segments of the comprehensive mix of tax cuts and spending proposals. While the prospects for passing a jobs bill are bleak, Congress must also take up measures that could cause problems for existing job training programs. The future is also unclear for the bill that funds the U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education.

READ MORE from Congress Continues Jobs Legislation, Funding Limbo

On Tuesday, October 11, 2011, the American Jobs Act was defeated in the U.S. Senate after it failed to attract the 60 votes needed to conclude debate. At Goodwill®, we stand ready to work with the administration and Congress to put Americans back to work and is hopeful that some of the promising aspects of the act will move forward, including increasing employment opportunities for veterans, people who are long-term unemployed, low-income adults, individuals with disabilities and youth.

READ MORE from Helping People Return to Work Remains a Priority for Goodwill®

Goodwill Industries® is proud to support National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM). This year’s NDEAM theme is, “Profit by Investing in Workers with Disabilities.” For decades, Goodwill® agencies have trained and hired people with disabilities. Goodwill provided employment training and job services to more than 240,000 individuals with disabilities last year. people with disabilities, including youth, older workers, and military veterans. While more employers should recognize the value of hiring people with disabilities, Congress can also do more to increase their employment opportunities.

READ MORE from Goodwill Supports National Disability Awareness Month

Yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives agreed to a Senate-passed spending measure that provides temporary funding for the upcoming fiscal year through October 4. Congress must pass another continuing resolution (expected to be good through November 18) before the October 4 deadline. But we are far from being out of the woods. Congress has yet to pass any of its 12 annual spending bills. Such short- and long-term uncertainty will make it even more difficult during these difficult economic times for community-based organizations like Goodwill to develop and implement sustainable strategies that help people with employment challenges find jobs and advance in their careers. While Goodwill’s self-sustaining social enterprise generates the bulk of the funds Goodwill invests in the communities it serves nationwide, federal funds:

• Leverage programs that local Goodwill agencies operate
Stimulate innovative advancements in Goodwill’s delivery of services
• Support partners in communities that provide key employment and supportive services that improve employment outcomes for the people that Goodwill serves

READ MORE from Funding for Programs Important to Goodwill® Remains Uncertain in Congressional Negotiations

In the midst of the wrangling taking place over temporary spending for FY 2012, U.S. House of Representatives and Senate committees that have jurisdiction over final FY 2012 spending measures are working on their respective bills. On Thursday, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved a bill to provide FY 2012 funding for the U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), and Education. That bill proposes to provide $158 billion in discretionary funding for a wide range of programs including several programs that support local Goodwill agencies’ efforts to help people find jobs and advance in careers. The Senate FY 2012 Labor, HHS, Education bill would provide:

• Approximately $2.6 billion for the Workforce Investment Act’s Adult, Youth, and Dislocated Workers funding streams
• $100 million for a Workforce Innovation Fund, a decrease compared to approximately $124 million in FY 2011
• Nearly $450 million for the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP), the same amount provided in FY 2011
• More than $3.1 billion for vocational rehabilitation grants to states, an increase from nearly $3.1 billion in FY 2011
• Sufficient funds to maintain the maximum Pell grant award at $5,550.

READ MORE from Goodwill® Urges Smart Investments on the Jobs Front

During President Obama’s address to a joint session of Congress on September 9, 2011, he referenced the American Jobs Act (AJA), and then delivered it to Capitol Hill requesting swift passage. As one of the largest nonprofit job training providers in the country, Goodwill stands ready to support the administration and Congress in efforts to put Americans back to work. Given staggering unemployment levels and alarming recently released 2010 Census data that reveals 2.6 million more Americans fell into poverty, we believe the time to act on a jobs bill is now.

READ MORE from Goodwill® Finds Promise in American Jobs Act

Fifteen years ago today the Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) program was created when President Clinton signed the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) into law. Since TANF was created in 1996, Goodwill Industries® has provided more than 1.5 million TANF recipients with pre- and post-employment services, including skills training, job search assistance, job retention support, and other career programs tailored to their needs.

READ MORE from Goodwill Urges TANF Reauthorization on 15th Anniversary

With less than a week before the U.S. is expected to start defaulting on its loans, Goodwill Industries International (GII) sent a letter to the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives urging it to maintain funding for programs that assist people Goodwill serves, including individuals with disabilities, youth, adults, dislocated workers, older workers, veteran, people with a criminal background and Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) recipients.

READ MORE from Goodwill Urges Congress to Preserve Funding Supporting Job Seekers, Pell Grants in Debt Reduction Deal

This week, advocates for the workforce system are poring over a discussion draft of a bill that would reauthorize the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). The draft was released to key stakeholders — including Goodwill — by the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee. Not updated since its enactment in 1998 and having expired in 2003, the bill’s release, albeit tardy, is a welcome action. A recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report called for greater alignment, coordination and streamlining of job training programs, giving fodder to critics to call for significant funding cuts for programs authorized by WIA. In May, House appropriators approved spending allocations that allow $139.2 billion in discretionary appropriations for the FY 2012 spending bill that provides funding for the U.S. Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education. This total is 12 percent less than the amount appropriated for FY 2011 and 23 percent below Obama’s budget request.

READ MORE from Goodwill to Issue Comments on WIA Reauthorization Bill Draft

Today, Congress passed a final budget deal to fund the government through the remainder of the fiscal year that ends on September 30, 2011. If signed by the president as expected, the final deal includes an across-the-board cut of 0.2 percent. In addition, several funding sources that local Goodwill® agencies care about will be further reduced.

READ MORE from Congress Passes Final Budget Deal