Oct 21, 2020, 3:08 PM ETFireside Chat, Panel

Part 1: A Conversation with US Department of Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia | Part 2: The Future of W

Through February 2020, the U.S. recorded a 3.5% unemployment rate, the lowest in 50 years (last seen in 1969), with 7 million jobs added since January 2017.
2019 data showed the largest recorded increase in median household income (nearly 7%), with the lowest poverty rate in approximately 50 years.
Between 2016 and 2019, the bottom 20% of earners saw a 32% increase in net worth, while the wage gap closed during this period.
Secretary Blinken attributes this growth to tax cuts incentivizing growth and the elimination of regulatory burdens, a strategy he intends to maintain post-COVID.
Following the onset of COVID-19, unemployment spiked, though the administration achieved a reduction to under 8.5% in four months, significantly faster than the three years required post-2008 financial crisis.
Current unemployment stands at 7.9%, with 11.4 million jobs regained since April, yet 6.2 million jobs remain open as of August.

Apprenticeships are being prioritized as a core strategy to equip workers with high-demand skills, with completers averaging annual wages of $65,000–$70,000.
The Department of Labor is expanding the "Industry-Recognized Apprenticeship Program" (IRAP) model, allowing accrediting bodies (e.g., community colleges, unions, trade associations) to approve programs, rather than government bodies alone.
Raytheon was the first company to have its program recognized as an IRAP, signaling expansion into healthcare, cybersecurity, and technical fields beyond traditional construction.
A specific case study highlighted a 21-year-old apprentice in North Carolina with a 4.2 GPA who purchased a home after three years of paid, on-the-job training.
Businesses seeking to establish apprenticeships are directed to Apprenticeship.gov for registration or to partner with IRAP-accrediting entities.

The pandemic accelerated labor market changes by approximately 10 years, specifically increasing comfort with remote work and online commerce.
While sectors with strong online presences saw hiring growth, the long-term impact of remote work remains unproven, with many consumers still preferring in-person retail experiences.
Labor participation was already low pre-COVID (nearly 40% of potential workers had given up), a trend exacerbated by the pandemic, creating a "K-shaped recovery."
Early career unemployment correlates with a potential 8 percentage point increase in all-cause mortality over the subsequent 20–30 years for affected cohorts.
The Aerospace Corporation noted that one-sixth of its workforce reports higher productivity while working remotely, validating telework as a lasting operational model.

Pre-COVID unemployment rates for African Americans, Hispanic Americans, and individuals with disabilities were at record lows, indicating increased employer accommodation for historically excluded groups.
The Department of Labor has continued to distribute hundreds of millions in grants to assist veterans, individuals returning from incarceration, and those affected by the opioid crisis.
Vivian Ming's research on 60,000 companies identified the diversity of leadership teams as the single largest predictor of wage gaps; specific representation of women on leadership teams predicted gender pay gaps, while Black representation predicted Black-white wage gaps.
Artificial Intelligence systems have demonstrated racial bias, such as early facial recognition failing to detect dark-skinned individuals or algorithms misidentifying Black athletes as criminals due to biased training data.
Steve Isak (Aerospace Corporation) noted a critical shortage of talent, citing that the U.S. graduated only four Black PhDs in aerospace engineering in the most recent reporting period.
Eloy Ortiz-Oakley (California Community Colleges) emphasized that 100% of California Community Colleges received a $100 million gift from the Jay Pritzker Foundation to support under-resourced students following highlighted inequities.
A major barrier to educational equity is the lack of broadband infrastructure, with many students previously relying on public Wi-Fi at coffee shops and libraries before the pandemic.

Broadband access is being reclassified as a critical infrastructure utility similar to electricity, requiring federal and state investment to ensure equal economic participation.
Higher education is recommended to shift from a "selective" to an "inclusive" model that values competencies and life experience over "seat time" or exclusive degree prestige.
Partnerships between employers and educational institutions must shorten dialogue times and focus on rapid articulation of specific competencies to meet immediate workforce needs.
Vivian Ming advocates for "Inclusion Impact Index" tools to measure potential job creation if underrepresented groups had equal access to high-growth opportunities.
Sarita Gupta (Ford Foundation) argues that upskilling alone is insufficient; job quality must improve to ensure full-time workers do not live in poverty.
Philanthropy is positioning itself as "risk capital" to fund equity initiatives where government or private sectors have not yet invested, particularly in worker co-design of technology.