[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5748 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5748

   To rebuild the Nation's crumbling infrastructure, transportation 
  systems, technology and computer networks, and energy distribution 
      systems, by strongly and urgently encouraging the immediate 
recruitment, employment, and on-the-job ``earn as you learn'' training 
  of young African Americans who throughout history experience higher 
  unemployment rates than any other race, which is a national crisis.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            February 3, 2020

 Mr. David Scott of Georgia (for himself, Ms. Fudge, and Mr. Cleaver) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                          Education and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To rebuild the Nation's crumbling infrastructure, transportation 
  systems, technology and computer networks, and energy distribution 
      systems, by strongly and urgently encouraging the immediate 
recruitment, employment, and on-the-job ``earn as you learn'' training 
  of young African Americans who throughout history experience higher 
  unemployment rates than any other race, which is a national crisis.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Jobs, On-the-Job `Earn-While-You-
Learn' Training, and Apprenticeships for Young African-Americans Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) Young African-American men and women are the hardest 
        hit by economic instability. Declared and affirmed by the 
        Federal Reserve, African Americans face unemployment rates that 
        are two to three times higher than their White counterparts for 
        the last several decades.
            (2) During economic recessions in 1974-75, 1981-82, 1990-
        91, and 2008, the African-American community faced 
        significantly higher unemployment rates than their White 
        counterparts.
            (3) Even during times of economic growth, African-American 
        communities experience prolonged financial vulnerability and 
        delayed recovery. Unemployment rates decline at a slower rate 
        for African-American men, and even a slower rate for African-
        American women as compared to their White counterparts.
            (4) This extraordinarily high unemployment rate has a 
        terrible rippling impact on the breakdown of the family 
        structure, as men and women in this age group are in the 
        primary child-producing ages.
            (5) Affirmed by the Department of Labor, diversity and 
        inclusion within the workforce benefits employees and 
        businesses across all industries, including apprenticeship 
        programs, which provide economic mobility to its participants.
            (6) Through the combined efforts of building trades unions 
        and community partners at the State and local level, there have 
        been established more than 150 apprenticeship readiness 
        programs across the United States that focus on creating 
        pathways to Registered Programs for people of color, women, and 
        veterans. Overall, from 2009 to 2019, building trades unions 
        and their signatory contractors have invested over $100,000,000 
        in outreach efforts targeting under-represented communities to 
        participate in apprenticeship readiness programs. Of the 4,800 
        individuals who have successfully completed a building trades 
        apprenticeship readiness program since 2016, 70 percent were 
        from communities of color and 22 percent were women.
            (7) The disproportionately high-unemployment rates, 
        combined with low participation rates from African Americans in 
        registered apprenticeship programs not only constitute a 
        national crisis but a national tragedy for the young African 
        Americans, many of whom are fathers and mothers who, without 
        jobs, are unable to provide for their families or home.
    (b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to secure jobs, on-the-job 
training, and apprenticeships for young African Americans ages 18 to 39 
with the labor unions, general contractors, and businesses who will 
rebuild the Nation's crumbling infrastructure in cities and communities 
throughout the Nation.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) this Act, while rebuilding the crumbling infrastructure 
        of this great Nation, will simultaneously help create good 
        paying jobs and job training that will provide young African 
        Americans ages 18 to 39 with the technical skills, computer 
        capabilities, and other skills necessary in this high 
        technology-driven job market, thus providing young African 
        Americans with highly developed skills that will make them very 
        competitive and attractive to many employers;
            (2) this Act greatly exemplifies and strengthens the high 
        nobility of purpose that is the founding grace of this great 
        Nation; and
            (3) the African-American organizations described in section 
        4(c) have a long and rich history of working to improve the 
        lives of African Americans, and can be very helpful in 
        successfully reaching, contacting, and recruiting unemployed 
        young African Americans.

SEC. 4. URGING EMPLOYMENT, ON-THE-JOB TRAINING, AND APPRENTICESHIPS FOR 
              UNEMPLOYED YOUNG AFRICAN AMERICANS IN REBUILDING THE 
              NATION'S CRUMBLING INFRASTRUCTURE.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Labor shall strongly and urgently 
encourage those labor unions, general contractors, and businesses, who 
will rebuild the Nation's crumbling infrastructure, transportation 
systems, technology and computer networks, and energy distribution 
systems, to actively recruit, hire, train, and provide apprentice 
programs registered under the National Apprenticeship Act (29 U.S.C. 50 
et seq.) to African Americans ages 18 to 39 through their existing jobs 
and through apprenticeships and earn-while-you-learn programs, 
registered under such Act. The Secretary shall provide assistance to 
such labor unions, general contractors, and businesses through every 
means available under existing law to help coordinate the recruitment 
of such individuals for such jobs, on-the-job training, and 
apprenticeships.
    (b) Coordination.--The jobs, on-the-job training, and 
apprenticeships made available by labor unions, general contractors, 
and businesses described in subsection (a) shall be conducted in 
conjunction with the Secretary of Labor and the labor unions and other 
associations which the Secretary has identified as those primarily 
involved in the infrastructure rebuilding described in such subsection. 
Such coordination shall also be done in conjunction with the National 
Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee.
    (c) Recruitment.--The Secretary shall coordinate with labor unions, 
general contractors, and businesses described in subsections (a) and 
(b) to recruit African Americans for the jobs, on-the-job training, and 
apprenticeships described in subsection (a) by reaching out and seeking 
assistance from within the African-American community, churches, and 
civil rights organizations that can offer valuable assistance to the 
Secretary of Labor, the labor unions, general contractors, and 
businesses with identifying, locating, and contacting unemployed young 
African Americans who want jobs, on-the-job training, and 
apprenticeships.
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