Tag Archives: Labor Department

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did you hear the great news ?


National Women's Law Center - Don't Discount Women: Demand Fair Change Not Spare Change
Millions of home-care workers who tirelessly care for seniors and people with disabilities will be protected by the basic wage and hour protections guaranteed under federal law! Under the long-awaited rules issued today, these workers — 9 in 10 of whom are women — will receive basic protections like minimum wage and overtime pay.
Please join us in thanking Secretary of Labor Tom Perez — and urge him to take the next step towards equal pay by releasing a new tool to collect pay information from federal contractors.
Today’s news shows just how much women workers need the Department of Labor to continue to push for more protections for women workers. Here’s why:

  • According to the new U.S. Census numbers released today, women and families are struggling to keep their heads above water. More than one in seven women, nearly 17.8 million, lived in poverty in 2012. And poverty rates were particularly high for women of color and women who head families.
  • The wage gap between men and women is still stuck at 77 cents, despite important laws that prohibit pay discrimination.

Collecting pay information from federal contractors would make it easier to enforce laws that prohibit discrimination.

  • A compensation data toll would help individuals like Lilly Ledbetter and Betty Dukes — women who fought for fair pay against some of the largest employers in the United States. Women like them shouldn’t have to go at it alone.
  • Since 2006, the federal government has had NO tool that effectively monitors wage discrimination based on race, national origin and gender by private employers. As a result, our tax dollars could be going to federal contractors who don’t pay women fairly.

Enough is enough. Today’s victory was an important step for women workers, but we still have a lot to do!
Please take action today by contacting the Department of Labor. It only takes a minute.
Thanks for pushing forward!
Sincerely,
Joan Entmacher  Joan Entmacher Vice President, Family Economic Security National Women’s Law Center     Fatima Goss Graves Fatima Goss Graves Vice President for Education and Employment National Women’s Law Center
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Stop the obstructio​nism


National Women's Law Center
What we need in a Secretary of Labor is a commitment to public service, to health and safety legal protections for women and all workers, and to enforcing our discrimination laws. With Tom Perez, this is what we would get.
Throughout his career, including most recently as head of the Civil Rights Division in the Department of Justice, Tom Perez has shown that he is committed to enforcing the laws upon which women, and all workers, rely. He’s combined his commitment with extraordinary skill and competence, both in the federal government and when he served as Secretary of Maryland’s Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation.
We can’t let a minority of Senators hold up his nomination. We need your help. Tell your Senators to allow a yes-or-no vote on Tom Perez for Secretary of Labor.
Here’s why this vote matters: The Department of Labor plays a critical role in ensuring opportunities for women in the workplace. It enforces laws enabling workers to take job-protected family and medical leave, wage and hour protections that shield workers from exploitation and abuse, and rules requiring federal contractors to advance equal opportunity in their workforces, including equal pay. The Department also houses the Women’s Bureau, whose mission is to improve pay and working conditions for women. The next Secretary of Labor will have the opportunity to continue the important progress toward fairer workplaces for women and for all workers.
Tom Perez has a proven track record of protecting and advancing legal rights and protections crucial to women. Tell your Senators to allow a yes-or-no vote on the nomination of Tom Perez for Secretary of Labor.
Thank you for everything you do to advance the rights of women and their families.
Sincerely,
Marcia Greenberger  Marcia Greenberger Co-President National Women’s Law Center    
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Presidential Proclamation — Blind Americans Equality Day, 2012

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The White House
Disability UpdatesNote: If you received this email as a forward but would like to be added to the White House Disability Group email distribution list, please visit our website at http://www.whitehouse.gov/disability-issues-contact and fill out the “contact us” form in the disabilities section, or you can email us at disability@who.eop.gov and provide your full name, city, state, and organization.

Recent disability announcements include the President proclaiming October 15, 2012, as Blind Americans Equality Day, the Department of Labor launching a virtual Workplace Flexibility Toolkit, the Federal Communications Commission putting internet closed captions rules into effect, and the Department of Education awarding $24 million in grant funding to 22 states to improve training systems to help children with disabilities.

Presidential Proclamation — Blind Americans Equality Day, 2012

As business leaders and public advocates, teachers and scientists, musicians and athletes, and in countless other ways, blind and visually impaired Americans have profoundly enriched every part of our national life. Today, we celebrate their innumerable contributions, and we recommit to guaranteeing equal access, equal opportunity, and equal respect for all Americans.

Read the full text of the proclamation at the following link: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/10/15/presidential-proclamation-blind-americans-equality-day-2012

US Department of Labor launches virtual Workplace Flexibility Toolkit during National Disability Employment Awareness Month

The U.S. Department of Labor has launched its online Workplace Flexibility Toolkit to provide employees, job seekers, employers, policymakers and researchers with information, resources and a unique approach to workplace flexibility. Workplace flexibility policies and practices typically focus on when and where work is done. The toolkit adds a new dimension — an emphasis on flexibility around job tasks and what work is done. Funded by the department’s Office of Disability Employment Policy in partnership with the department’s Women’s Bureau, the toolkit makes more than 170 resources easily accessible

Read more about the toolkit at the following link: http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/odep/ODEP20122014.htm#.UHwpRMU712w

Federal Communications Commission Internet Closed Captioning Rules Went Into Effect September 30

Rules requiring distributors of certain Internet video programming to provide closed captioning to assist viewers who are deaf or hard-of-hearing went into effect on September 30. Closed captioning is the visual display of the audio portion of video programming. These Internet closed captioning requirements were implemented pursuant to the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 (CVAA).

Read more about the new rules at the following link: http://www.fcc.gov/document/internet-closed-captioning-rules-went-effect-september-30

$24 Million in Grants Awarded to 22 States to Improve Training Systems to Help Children with Disabilities

The U.S. Department of Education announced the award of $24 million in grants to 22 states to improve personnel training systems to help children with disabilities. States receiving grants are: Alabama, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Utah, Vermont, Virginia and Wisconsin.

The State Personnel Development Grants Program, authorized by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), provides funds to assist states in reforming and improving their systems for personnel preparation and professional development in early intervention, education and transition services in order to enhance results for children with disabilities.

Read more about the grant awards at the following link: http://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/24-million-grants-awarded-22-states-improve-training-systems-help-children-disab
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Take Action: Lilly and Betty Need Back-up …Fatima Goss Graves, National Women’s Law Center


As a fair pay advocate, you stood hand-in-hand with Lilly Ledbetter and Betty Dukes as they fought for fair pay against some of the largest employers in the United States. As courageous as they have been, women like them shouldn’t have to go at it alone.

It’s time that Lilly and Betty have some back-up. Take action today: Tell the Department of Labor to help protect women from pay discrimination. WWW.NWLC.ORG

The Department of Labor is currently considering creating a new compensation data tool that would make it easier to enforce laws that prohibit pay discrimination. Since 2006, the federal government has had NO tool to effectively monitor wage discrimination based on race, national origin and gender by private employers. This means that our tax dollars could possibly be going to federal contractors who are not paying women fairly. It’s time to take a stand. Raise your voice: tell the Department of Labor to move us forward and collect wage data.

WWW.NWLC.ORG

So what do we want the new data tool to look like? In developing the compensation tool, we urge the Department to:

*Require that federal contractors submit wage information for all workers and in a wide range of categories, including workers that are part-time;

*Require that the Department conduct compensation reviews for companies that have more than one location in order to address companywide discrimination;

*Require that businesses bidding on federal contracts submit compensation data as a part of the bidding process. Federal tax dollars should not be wasted on companies that unlawfully discriminate against its workers; and

*Include comprehensive data that highlights gender, racial and ethnic disparities not only in pay, but also in hiring, terminations, promotions and tenure. Pay discrimination is often inextricably intertwined with other practices prohibited by employment discrimination laws.
The wage gap has been stuck at 77 cents for the past three years, despite important laws that prohibit gender discrimination in compensation. And we know that individuals like Lilly and Betty face significant obstacles in addressing and detecting pay discrimination. Collecting this data would be a critical step in ensuring the government can effectively combat pay discrimination. As a fair pay advocate, we urge you to weigh-in and support this new data tool at the Department of Labor.

WWW.NWLC.ORG

Sincerely,

Fatima Goss Graves
Vice President for Education and Employment
National Women’s Law Center

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