[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 6 (Tuesday, February 1, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: February 1, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                  THE WORKFORCE EDUCATION ACT OF 1994

                                 ______


                        HON. MICHAEL A. ANDREWS

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 1, 1994

  Mr. ANDREWS of Texas. Mr. Speaker, today I am pleased to introduce 
the Workforce Education Act of 1994. The approval last month of the 
Uruguay round of the General Agreement on Trade and Tariffs is just the 
latest reminder that the world has already entered a new economic age. 
The globalization of markets, communications, and resources combined 
with accelerating technological developments will continue to be the 
driving forces behind many of the changes in the world today.
  It is hard to imagine, for example, the political liberalization that 
has taken place throughout the world independent of these economic 
trends. Globalization is a catch-all to describe the growing need for 
economies, if they are to compete, to treat the world as their stage. 
The technological advances and reorganizations of production processes 
that are critical to being a leader in this new world economic arena 
require a highly educated and well-trained work force. The leading 
factor in productivity growth is worker education. Unfortunately when 
it comes to providing education to all levels of its work force the 
United States does not have a coherent policy.
  Severall studies have concluded the United States may have the worst 
school to work transition system of any advanced industrial society. 
What system that does exist is oriented toward the college bound, even 
though half of all U.S. students do not go on to a university. This 
group, sometimes termed the ``Forgotten Half'', can look forward to 
real wages that have been declining since the mid-1970's. Few of these 
students have access to the training that will enable them to hold high 
skilled jobs. In Germany, by contrast, 70 percent of all students enter 
into that nation's well regarded apprenticeship program which combines 
academic training with solid work experience and certification. Several 
States and the U.S. Congress have recognized this problem and taken 
steps to establish State and local job apprenticeship programs. 
However, the active participation of the private sector is critical to 
the success of these efforts. Job apprenticeship programs require a 
substantial commitment in time and resources from employers in order to 
be effective. Unfortunately, the United States, unlike its foreign 
competitors, offers few incentives or rewards for companies that 
participate in such programs.
  Those students who do go on to college face grave difficulties 
in financing their education. College costs have been rising steadily, 
increasing more than 100 percent in the last decade. Students from many 
middle- and working-class families who are unable to qualify for grants 
are forced to go into substantial debt to pay for college. Access to a 
university education has historically been the ticket to prosperity for 
many Americans. We must take steps to ensure that the doors to college 
are not shut to the children of middle- and working-class Americans.

  The United States must not only take steps to train new entrants into 
the work force but also must broaden that focus to include existing 
workers as well. The new global economy will require workers to 
constantly update their job skills. Unfortunately, the United States 
lags far behind its competitors in providing this type of training. 
Federal job training programs for workers who lose their jobs through 
economic restructuring, defense cutbacks, and environmental conditions 
are a confusing patchwork of programs, each with its own eligibility 
rules, services, and benefits. This inefficient system is cumbersome 
and time-consuming. We need reforms that will allow our worker 
retraining programs to quickly respond to the needs of displaced 
workers and help them gain the long-term skills and training to once 
again be productive members of the work force.
  In recognition of all of these factors, today I introduce the 
Workforce Education Act of 1994. This legislation incorporates a three-
pronged approach that will bolster American productivity by improving 
the potential of our Nation's most important resource, its people.
  First of all, my legislation assists the forgotten half of our non-
college-bound youth by providing a tax incentive for employers to take 
an active role in approved State and local job apprenticeship programs. 
This initiative builds on the momentum of recent Federal and State 
efforts to implement such training programs by expanding the targeted 
jobs tax credit to include qualified participants in an approved job 
apprenticeship program. Employers will be eligible to receive a TJTC 
credit equal to 40 percent of the first $6,000 paid to any student who 
is enrolled in a planned program of structured job training that 
integrates academic instruction with work-based learning. Encouraging 
private employers to provide a work-based learning environment is the 
key to any successful job apprenticeship programs.
  The Workforce Education Act of 1994 also addresses the needs of our 
college-bound youth by vastly expanding the size of the National 
Service Program. This innovative program, which the President signed 
into law last year, allows students the opportunity both to serve their 
communities and to earn educational benefits. It gives students an 
additional option on how to pay for college while at the same time 
giving them important public service experience. My bill will 
eventually allow up to 150,000 students to take part in this program 
each year.
  Finally, the Workforce Education Act of 1994 also recognizes the 
importance of retraining workers who lose their jobs due to the 
economic restructuring that is currently underway. A responsive and 
efficient program will mitigate the human cost as America retools its 
work force to compete in the 21st century. My bill therefore directs 
the Secretary of Labor to undertake a thorough study of our current 
worker retraining system and asks him to come up with recommendations 
on consolidating the current panoply of programs with the aim of 
increasing the flexibility and effectiveness of services offered to 
displaced workers.
  As we move toward the next millennium, our Nation will be faced with 
further dramatic changes in the world's political and economic 
structures. The Workforce Education Act of 1994 will help ensure that 
the United States is prepared to take advantage of the economic 
opportunities inherent in these challenges. It is a bill that will give 
American workers the access to the skills and training necessary for 
the high-paying jobs that they and their families deserve.

                          ____________________