CEOs Applaud House Passage of Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act; Urge President to Sign Into Law

Washington – Business Roundtable, an association of business leaders representing every sector of the economy, applauded U.S. House passage on July 9 of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act. The bill, which the Senate passed last month, reauthorizes the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) and better aligns federal workforce development programs with employer needs.

“We applaud the House of Representatives for joining the Senate in supporting education and workforce training programs that benefit employers and workers alike,” said Eric Spiegel, President & CEO of Siemens Corporation and Vice Chair of the Business Roundtable Education and Workforce Committee. “Strong bipartisan leadership in both bodies of Congress sends a strong message on the importance of programs that prepare Americans for the jobs of today and tomorrow. We urge President Obama to sign this bill into law immediately to make our country, employers and workers more competitive.”

It has been 14 years since WIA was last authorized. Since that time, the gap between skilled workers and unfilled jobs has widened, creating a drag on economic growth. To address this issue, Business Roundtable supports the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act because of its mix of programs to train Americans with the skills employers need. Click here to read the Business Roundtable principles for WIA reauthorization.

Business Roundtable earlier this year released a policy agenda for supporting additional U.S. jobs and economic growth. Training America’s workers to fill the jobs of today and tomorrow is important for U.S. competitiveness and growing the economy.