Andy Barr: “I thank my friend, the gentleman from Arkansas, for his leadership on this very important issue, providing employers…”

“I thank my friend, the gentleman from Arkansas, for his leadership on this very important issue, providing employers with flexibility. Yes, we want to support Department of Labor-registered apprenticeships, but we need employers to be able to fill these job openings with skilled workers using apprenticeships that are actually tailored for the jobs that are available. When I visit the employers in central and eastern Kentucky, they all tell me the same story: Because of tax cuts and deregulation, the economy is booming, they are creating jobs, but they can't find workers. There is a labor supply shortage in this country, and we need more skills. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that labor force participation among prime-age men has dropped from 86 percent in 1950 to a rate currently of 71.5 percent. We have got to get that labor participation rate up, and, because of that, we need skills. That is why I am proud, as chairman of the Republican Study Committee's American Worker Task Force, to support the Hill amendment, which would allow Federal grant funds to be used for apprenticeship programs that are not just DOL-registered. The Acting CHAIR. The time of the gentleman has expired.”