In hyper-partisan world, workforce development topic of consensus

*First appeared in the Laurel Chronicle on July 30, 2014

In May, a bipartisan (and bicameral) group of lawmakers announced they had reached an agreement to improve the nation’s workforce development system. The deal purported to update the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 by “moderniz[ing] and improve[ing] existing federal workforce development programs, help[ing] workers attain skills for 21st century jobs, and foster[ing] the modern workforce that evolving American businesses rely on to compete.”

Two months after congressional negotiators announced the agreement, President Obama signed the new legislation (officially the “Workforce Investment and Opportunity Act”) into law.

This wouldn’t be particularly noteworthy, except few things get passed quickly – or rather, at all – in today’s hyper-partisan environment. (This is not always a bad thing. An ineffective Congress poses fewer threats to my way of life.)

Passage of this legislation didn’t create a lot of fanfare. I guess that’s due to the bipartisan nature of the bill. No sexy headlines, no real political buzz, no fodder for campaign fundraising emails. Come to think of it, maybe that’s why few issues are bipartisan in nature…

But back to the story. Is workforce development a bipartisan issue? Over the past few years, I’ve developed a strong belief that workforce development is a topic that can, if given the chance, create consensus even in politically toxic environments. The passage and signing of the WIOA reinforces this belief.

I also considered the history of the original workforce act. It was passed in 1998 by a Republican Congress and signed into law by a Democrat President (our neighbor from Arkansas, Mr. Clinton).

In 2009, the President championed and Congress passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), which wasted a lot of money on a lot of stagnant programs. But its workforce training component (authorized temporarily) allowed a Mississippi governor to create a subsidized employment program that was not only successful, but also heralded as one of the most innovative in the nation.

Even at the state Capitol, support for workforce training is universally accepted as smart public policy. Whether it’s increasing technical funding at community colleges or authorizing legislation for training programs, legislators are like-minded when it relates to helping Mississippians learn new skills. They see this as an avenue to help individuals earn higher wages, increasing their individual success and in turn that of their children. (The idea in summation: A rising tide lifts all boats.)

Over the years I’ve had several versions of this conversation with a colleague of mine, and he tends to agree – which is saying a lot, since we don’t often find consensus on matters of public policy. Bless his heart.

Workforce development issues can provide an opportunity for lawmakers to work alongside each other, build trust, and do something half decent in the process. Who knows? Maybe this camaraderie will spill over into other issues, like reforming the tax code or our immigration laws.