Fattah Joins White House Bill Signing Ceremony for Workforce Innovation & Opportunity Act

WASHINGTON, July 22, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, Congressman Chaka Fattah (D-PA) joined President Obama at the White House to sign H.R.803, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) into law. The legislation contained critical components of Fattah's Urban Jobs Act legislation, a bill he introduced with Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) earlier in the 113^th Congress that seeks to increase employment among at-risk youth.

WIOA was passed with bipartisan support by the House and Senate earlier this summer. The bill modernizes and improves the nation's workforce development system by reauthorizing the decade-old Workforce Investment Act.

"By incorporating the Urban Jobs Act, this legislation makes a strong commitment to ensuring America's youth are on a path to successfully obtain high-wage, high-skilled jobs and reach their fullest potential," Congressman Fattah said. "In Philadelphia, I've witnessed firsthand the impact that job training programs can have on individuals who have been unemployed or unable to find or maintain a job because they lacked the necessary skills and training. By focusing on raising youth employment levels through GED attainment, job training, and apprenticeships for disconnected youth, we are taking the steps to change the trajectory and expand opportunity for the next generation of American workers."

"Investing in the American workforce is integral to maintaining America's competitive edge. I was honored to stand with the President today and sign the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act legislation into law," Fattah added. "I am especially pleased Congress was able to come together in a bipartisan fashion to produce a bill that will strengthen our economy, create jobs, and ensure we have a modern workforce ready to meet the growing demands of the 21^st century."

During his remarks, President Obama thanked the Congressional lawmakers in attendance for answering his call to reauthorize the Workforce Investment Act and update it for the 21^st century.

"This is not a win for Democrats or Republicans, it's a win for American workers. It's a win for the middle class," President Obama said. "The bill I'm signing today and the actions I'm taking today will connect more ready-to-work Americans with ready-to-be-filled jobs."

The Urban Jobs Act proposals contained within WIOA include focusing youth program services on assisting out-of-school youth, including youth who have been subject to the criminal justice process, through high school dropout recovery efforts and attainment of recognized post-secondary credentials that are often necessary for securing good-paying jobs. As proposed in the Urban Jobs Act, WIOA also makes national and local community-based organizations or intermediaries eligible for grants or pay-for-performance contracts, in partnership with workforce investment boards, to provide programming focused on improving the education and training of youth.

Funding would be used to provide a comprehensive set of services that includes educational programming, such as skills assessment, reading and math remediation, educational enrichment, General Education Development (GED) credential preparation, and post-secondary education as well as employment and job readiness activities, including mentoring, internships, on-the-job training, occupational skills training, job placement in unsubsidized jobs, and personal development.

SOURCE Office of Congressman Chaka Fattah