A Season of Progress for Oregon's Economy

Wed Mar 30 10:06:03 PDT 2011

Bureau of Labor andIndustries (BOLI)
Commissioner BradAvakian

Commissioner’s Message – March 30, 2011
A Season of Progress for Oregon’s Economy

Dear Friends,

It’s been a long, hard road for Oregon’s economy since the national
recession began in late 2007.  In the wake of the meltdown on Wall
Street, too many businesses on Oregon’s Main Streets were forced to
close their doors, and too many of our workers were pushed onto the
unemployment lines.  In all, Oregonlost nearly 150,000 jobs in 2008 and
2009 – a devastating blow to the state’s economy.  Even when we started
to see some job growth again in 2010, it was too slow and too halting to
give anyone much comfort.  

This spring, however, we’re starting to see signs of real progress on
the road to recovery.

·        Real progress in Oregon’s employment reports, which are now
showing the fastest job growth in 15 years and strong momentum in the
construction and manufacturing sectors.

·        Real progress in Oregon’s workforce development efforts, where
BOLI has partnered with the Department of Transportation to prepare more
workers for good, living-wage jobs in the highway construction trades.

·        Real progress in Oregon’s Legislature, where Republicans and
Democrats are coming together around several BOLI bills to protect
workers’ rights and revitalize practical career education for our
students.  

All of these developments are encouraging, and you can find more
detailed updates about each of them below.  But first, I want to take a
moment to say a few words in particular about our career education bill,
which goes to the heart of my belief that the best way to expand
economic opportunity tomorrow is to expand educational opportunity
today.

Last year, I wrote (
http://www.oregon.gov/BOLI/docs/01.19.10_Commissioners_Message_Special.pdf
)to you about how employers were consistently telling me that they
couldn’t find enough workers with the right job skills.  Those
conversations were a painful reminder of the costly mistake Oregonmade
when it stopped investing in the type of vocational training that had
once been a staple in our schools.  It was a discouraging situation, but
as I emphasized then, finding a solution to the problem could present “a
real opportunity in our state” – an opportunity to reinvest in one of
the most important components of our children’s education. 

Over the past year, we’ve developed a plan to seize that opportunity –
a plan supported by a broad coalition of businesses, labor unions, trade
associations, educators, and legislators from both parties.  Embodied in
House Bill 3362, the plan would jumpstart the revitalization of Career
and Technical Education in our middle schools and high schools and help
prepare our students for living-wage jobs in high-growth industries.  As
reported (
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/article/20110324/NEWS/103240351/1179/POLITICS/Bill-would-give-boost-technical-training
)by the Statesman Journal, the career education bill took “center stage”
in Salem last week with a favorable hearing before the House Education
Committee, and it enjoys the bipartisan support of 59 cosponsors.  

Passage of HB 3362 would send an unmistakable message that Oregonstands
united in its commitment to expanding opportunity for our students and
supporting our businesses by developing a highly skilled workforce.  In
the months ahead, I’ll keep you posted on the progress of our career
education bill in the Legislature, and please let me know if you have
additional ideas for how we can continue to strengthen Oregon’s economy,
support Oregon’s businesses, and protect Oregon’s workers.

Sincerely,

Brad Avakian

2011 Brings Renewed Job Growth to Oregon

On March 15, the Oregon Employment Department released the most
encouraging jobs report (
http://www.qualityinfo.org/pubs/pressrel/0311.pdf )the state has seen
in over a decade.  Highlights of the report include:

·        Strongest job growth in 15 years.  The Oregoneconomy created
9,800 jobs in February, the largest monthly gain since 1996.  The job
growth in February followed a strong gain of 6,700 jobs in January, and
the Oregoneconomy has now created jobs for five straight months.

·        Job growth in both construction and manufacturing.  The
Employment Department reported that “construction employment appears to
have turned the corner,” having now experienced three consecutive months
of seasonally adjusted job gains, and the Department also highlighted
that manufacturing employment has risen 2.4% over the past year.

·        The unemployment rate continues to drop.  The unemployment
rate, which was as high as 11.6 percent in 2009, continued its steady
decline and was down to 10.2 percent in February 2011.

Reporting on the news, OPB (
http://news.opb.org/article/80250-oregon-sees-fifth-straight-month-job-growth/
) observed that “Oregon’s economy appears to be gathering steam,” and
the Oregonian (
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2011/03/oregon_adds_9800_jobs_in_febru_1.html
) described the new numbers as evidence that the state is “bouncing back
strongly from the recession.” 

BOLI Announces Additional Training and Support Services 
Under Highway Workforce Development Program

Since the last Commissioner’s Message, BOLI has announced three more
major agreements under the 2011 BOLI-ODOT Heavy Highway Workforce
Development Program.  The program is funding critical training and
support services that will help current and aspiring construction
workers gain and keep high-skill, living-wage jobs.  These services are
also helping to knock down barriers traditionally faced by women and
minorities who are interested in the highway trades.

The three newly announced agreements – with the Oregon and Southern
Idaho Laborers-Employers Training Trust, Portland Community College, and
the Academy for Architecture, Construction & Engineering – come on top
of previous agreements reached with Cooper Zeitz and Portland
Youthbuilders.  More details on the services that will be provided under
the agreements can be found here (
http://www.oregon.gov/BOLI/docs/02.14.11_BOLI_Release_-_BOLI_awards_first_contracts.pdf
), here (
http://www.oregon.gov/BOLI/docs/3.16.11_News_Release_-_BOLI_Announces_Round_II.pdf
), and here (
http://www.oregon.gov/BOLI/docs/3.22.11_News_Release_-_BOLI_Awards_Final_Major_Contract_Under_Highway_Workforce_Development_Program.pdf
).

“Our top priority is expanding job opportunities for Oregonians around
the state, and that’s exactly what this workforce development program
does.  Under the projects we’re funding in partnership with ODOT, early
training will be more accessible to women and people of color who are
seeking careers in the highway construction industry, and key support
will be available to help young apprentices overcome financial barriers
to completing their training and qualifying for living-wage jobs.”  –
Commissioner Avakian

House Unanimously Passes BOLI Bill To 
Protect Workers From Paychecks that Bounce 

Short version:  

“Bill would aid workers paid with bad checks” (
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/article/20110327/STATE/103270349/1042
)(Statesman Journal)

Longer version:  

In a resounding victory for Oregonworkers, the House passed HB 2039
last week by a vote of 58-0.  The bill authorizes BOLI to assess civil
penalties against an employer who has paid an employee with a
non-sufficient funds (NSF) check.  

Under current law, an employee who files a claim with BOLI for unpaid
wages cannot recover damages resulting from the numerous NSF bank fees
and overdraft charges the employee may have incurred in trying to cash
the employer’s deficient check.  Instead, the employee is forced to
prosecute a separate legal action for those remedies.  The most
vulnerable and lowest-wage workers often do not have the resources to
take private legal action and can be left bearing the costs of the
bounced paycheck.  HR 2039 solves this problem by empowering BOLI to
seek the same civil penalties available in a private lawsuit, with the
recovered money payable directly to the wronged employee.  

Bipartisan Majority in OregonLegislature 
Provides Additional Workers’ Benefits

During the Great Recession of 2007-2009, a record number of Americans
found themselves out of work for extended periods of time through no
fault of their own.  Across the country, different states have taken
different approaches (
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/29/us/politics/29michigan.html?_r=2&partner=rss&emc=rss
)in deciding whether to continue helping these workers as they struggle
to make ends meet while looking for new jobs to support their families.

In Oregon, most Democrats and Republicans have rejected partisan
political arguments about this issue and followed the advice of the
nonpartisan economists who agree (
http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2010-12-01-unemployment-expire-effects_N.htm
) that extending unemployment benefits in a recovery helps “drive the
economy because the unemployed tend to spend every dollar they get,
pumping cash into businesses.”  In addition to being good for our
economy, it’s also the right thing to do for Oregon’s working families
who are fighting to pay their bills and keep food on the table.  That’s
why we should be so proud that the Oregon Legislature overwhelmingly
passed – and Governor Kitzhaber signed (
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/news/2011/03/24/kitzhaber-signs-unemployment-bills.html
)– two bills that extend unemployment benefits for Oregonians as they
look for new jobs.

Equal Pay and Intern Protection Bills 
Receive First Public Hearings in House

The Equal Pay for Equal Work Act of 2011 (HB 2861) and the Civil Rights
Protections for Interns and Volunteers Act of 2011 (HB 2862) both
received hearings in the House Business and Labor Committee last week. 
The bills are priorities for BOLI and the Oregon Council on Civil
Rights.

HB 2862 would clarify that existing civil rights and workplace
protections also apply to interns and volunteers.  HB 2861 would fill a
hole in Oregon’s current equal pay law, which prohibits wage
discrimination based on gender but does not prohibit wage discrimination
based on race, color, religion, sexual orientation, national origin,
marital status, disability, or age.  The Statesman Journal (
http://www.statesmanjournal.com/article/20110325/NEWS/103250328/Anti-bias-expansion-heard-by-House-panel?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|News|s
) reported on the equal pay hearing, and quoted the Commissioner’s
argument in support of HB 2861:

“By extending the protections of Oregon’s equal-pay law to all classes
of citizens who have endured unlawful discrimination, we can take
another important step forward in the long march towards equality in the
workplace.”

Bipartisan Support for the Career and Technical Education Bill

Commissioner Avakian explained above why he is so passionate about
restoring career and technical education to our schools, but he’s not
alone.  Here are some recent statements from other elected leaders about
the issue:

“This bill is bringing Oregonians together across party lines because
it will achieve goals we all share.  It will equip our students to
compete for high-wage jobs in high-growth industries, and it will
provide our businesses with the highly skilled workers they need to
continue or expand their operations here in Oregon.” – Representative
Sal Esquivel (R-Medford)

“Investing in Career and Technical Education today will pay big
dividends in the future by keeping more homegrown businesses in Oregon,
attracting new businesses to the state, and creating more good jobs for
our workers – all of which helps our state’s bottom line.  In short,
this bill is a win for Oregon’s students, a win for Oregon’s businesses,
and a win for Oregon’s economy.” – Representative Michael Dembrow
(D-Portland)

“This is just one more way to connect business with the government and
educational systems and allow students to have other career options.” –
House Republican Leader Kevin Cameron (R-Salem)

For a complete overview of BOLI’s legislative agenda for 2011 –
including the career education bill and other priorities – please see
our fact sheet, BOLI Bills Briefly (
http://www.oregon.gov/BOLI/docs/BOLI_Bills_Briefly_3.29.11.pdf ).  If
you have any questions about the status of particular bills, please
contact BOLI Legislative Director Kate Newhall at
kate.newhall at state.or.us. 

For a printable PDF of the Commissioner’s Message, click here (
http://www.oregon.gov/BOLI/docs/03.30.11_Commissioners_Message.pdf )

For more information and news from BOLI, visit us online here (
http://www.oregon.gov/BOLI/ )

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