Energy and manufacturing workforce development

(a)

In general

The Secretary of Energy (in this Act referred to as the Secretary) shall prioritize education and training for energy and manufacturing-related jobs in order to increase the number of skilled workers trained to work in energy and manufacturing-related fields, including by— (1)encouraging the Nation’s education system to equip students with the skills, mentorships, training, and technical expertise necessary to fill the employment opportunities vital to managing and operating the Nation’s energy and manufacturing industries, in collaboration with representatives from the energy and manufacturing industries (including the oil, gas, coal, nuclear, utility, pipeline, renewable, petrochemical, manufacturing, and electrical construction sectors) to identify the areas of highest need in each sector and to develop guidelines for the skills necessary to develop a workforce trained to go into the following sectors of the energy and manufacturing sectors: (A)Energy efficiency industry, including work in energy efficiency, conservation, weatherization, or retrofitting, or as inspectors or auditors. (B)Pipeline industry, including work in pipeline construction and maintenance or work as engineers or technical advisors. (C)Utility industry, including work in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity and natural gas, such as utility technicians, operators, lineworkers, engineers, scientists, and information technology specialists. (D)Nuclear industry, including work as scientists, engineers, technicians, mathematicians, or security personnel. (E)Oil and gas industry, including work as scientists, engineers, technicians, mathematicians, petrochemical engineers, or geologists. (F)Renewable industry, including work in the development, manufacturing, and production of renewable energy sources (such as solar, hydropower, wind, or geothermal energy). (G)Coal industry, including work as coal miners, engineers, developers and manufacturers of state-of-the-art coal facilities, technology vendors, coal transportation workers and operators, or mining equipment vendors. (H)Manufacturing industry, including work as operations technicians, operations and design in additive manufacturing, 3–D printing, advanced composites, and advanced aluminum and other metal alloys, industrial energy efficiency management systems, including power electronics, and other innovative technologies. (I)Chemical manufacturing industry, including work in construction (such as welders, pipefitters, and tool and die makers) or as instrument and electrical technicians, machinists, chemical process operators, chemical engineers, quality and safety professionals, and reliability engineers; (2)encouraging the Nation’s education system to equip students with the skills, mentorships, training, and technical expertise necessary to fill the employment opportunities vital to managing and operating the Nation’s energy and manufacturing industries; and (3)strengthening and more fully engaging Department of Energy programs and labs in carrying out the Department’s workforce development initiatives including the Minorities in Energy Initiative. (b)

Priority

The Secretary shall make educating and training underrepresented groups for energy and manufacturing-related jobs a national priority. (c)

Clearinghouse

In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall establish a clearinghouse to— (1)maintain and update information and resources on training and workforce development programs for energy and manufacturing-related jobs, including job training and workforce development programs available to assist displaced and unemployed energy and manufacturing workers transitioning to new employment; and (2)act as a resource, and provide guidance, for schools, community colleges, universities (including minority serving institutions), workforce development programs, labor-management organizations, and industry organizations that would like to develop and implement energy and manufacturing-related training programs. (d)

Collaboration

In carrying out this section, the Secretary— (1)shall collaborate with schools, community colleges, universities (including minority serving institutions), workforce-training organizations, national laboratories, State energy offices, workforce investment boards, and the energy and manufacturing industries; (2)shall encourage and foster collaboration, mentorships, and partnerships among organizations (including industry, schools, community colleges, workforce-development organizations, and colleges and universities) that currently provide effective job training programs in the energy and manufacturing fields and institutions (including schools, community colleges, workforce development programs, and colleges and universities) that seek to establish these types of programs in order to share best practices and approaches that best suit local, State, and national needs; and (3)shall collaborate with the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Department of Commerce, the Bureau of the Census, and the energy and manufacturing industries to develop a comprehensive and detailed understanding of the energy and manufacturing workforce needs and opportunities by State and by region. (e)

Outreach to minority serving institutions

In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall— (1)give special consideration to increasing outreach to minority serving institutions (including historically Black colleges and universities, predominantly Black institutions, Hispanic serving institutions, Native American serving Nontribal Institutions, and tribal institutions); (2)make existing resources available through program cross-cutting to minority serving institutions with the objective of increasing the number of skilled minorities and women trained to go into the energy and manufacturing sectors; (3)encourage industry to improve the opportunities for students of minority serving institutions to participate in industry internships and cooperative work/study programs; and (4)partner with the Department of Energy laboratories to increase underrepresented groups’ participation in internships, fellowships, traineeships, and employment at all Department of Energy laboratories. (f)

Outreach to displaced and unemployed energy and manufacturing workers

In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall— (1)give special consideration to increasing outreach to employers and job trainers preparing displaced and unemployed energy and manufacturing workers for emerging energy and manufacturing jobs; (2)make existing resources available through program cross-cutting to institutions serving displaced and unemployed energy and manufacturing workers with the objective of training individuals to re-enter the energy and manufacturing workforce; (3)encourage the energy and manufacturing industries to improve opportunities for displaced and unemployed energy and manufacturing workers to participate in internships and cooperative work/study programs; and (4)work closely with the energy and manufacturing industries to identify energy and manufacturing operations, such as coal-fired power plants and coal mines, scheduled for closure and to provide early intervention assistance to workers employed at such energy and manufacturing operations by— (A)giving special consideration to employers and job trainers preparing such workers for emerging energy and manufacturing jobs; (B)making existing resources available through program cross-cutting to institutions serving such workers with the objective of training them to re-enter the energy and manufacturing workforce; and (C)encouraging the energy and manufacturing industries to improve opportunities for such workers to participate in internships and cooperative work/study programs. (g)

Enrollment in training and apprenticeship programs

In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall work with industry and community-based workforce organizations to help identify students and other candidates, including from underrepresented communities such as minorities, women, and veterans, to enroll into training and apprenticeship programs for energy and manufacturing-related jobs.