Substantial job growth, SOTU h ighlights and the FMLA turns 30

State of the Union emphasizes progress, resilience and opportunity for US workers

In his State of the Union address, President Joe Biden underscored how his economic plan is bringing back good-paying jobs that don’t require a four-year degree. The address covered many topics, including job growth, worker organizing, non-college paths to good jobs, support for mental health, veteran job training and a cancer moonshot. Click the links below to learn more about the Labor Department’s work on these issues. Â

Secretary Walsh: "Everybody should be able to take leave when they need it."

Before 1993, if your baby got cancer, there was no guarantee you’d still have a job when you got back from the oncologist. Ivonne Limongi was unfortunate enough to need leave for exactly that reason, but like millions of other workers in the past 30 years, she was able to take job-protected leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act. Limongi spoke about her experiences at an event kicking off the department’s celebration of the FMLA’s anniversary, where she joined Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh, Second Gentleman Douglas Emhoff and others in celebrating this landmark legislation and discussing the needs of America’s working families.

Women’s Bureau launches paid leave website

Job-protected leave has been a lifeline for millions of workers, but paid leave means people can afford to take time to care for themselves and their families. While federal law doesn’t guarantee U.S. workers a single day of paid leave, several states have laws that create paid family and medical leave programs for eligible workers. A new site provides information about different types of leave, and the benefits of paid leave for working families.

Widespread job growth continues with 517,000 new jobs in January

The economy added 517,000 jobs in January, with growth in leisure and hospitality, professional and business services, health care and other industries. “With 12.1 million jobs added since President Biden took office and a monthly average of 356,000 jobs over the past three months, we began 2023 with more strong, steady job growth that benefits workers and their families,” Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh said.

Blocked emergency exits at Dollar Tree continue a disturbing trend

Once again, OSHA investigators found blocked emergency exits at a Dollar Tree store, this time in Alabama. Since 2017, federal and state OSHA programs have identified more than 300 violations in more than 500 inspections at Dollar Tree and Family Dollar stores.

How Black businesses create good jobs and talent pipelines

Secretary Walsh met with Black business owners for a panel discussion on the role of Black-owned businesses in building good jobs. The conversation covered paths to success, investing in workers and ways federal policy can support small and Black-owned businesses.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Nursing mother rights

Under a new law, the right to pump breastmilk at work covers more nursing mothers, including those employed as teachers, farmworkers and care workers.

Overtime wages restored

A Philadelphia-area home healthcare agency and its owners must pay 398 workers more than $2.3 million in back wages and damages.

Dry ice dangers

A Missouri cattle processing plant received its seventh OSHA citation since March 2020, this time for exposing employees to high levels of carbon dioxide.

Trafficking sentence

A Florida labor contractor is headed to prison for his part in a conspiracy to subject migrant farmworkers to forced labor, obstruct investigators and intimidate witnesses.

A rewarding career

Ron Vargas helps make sure workers can access the education and training they need for good careers.

Bringing home the dough

To celebrate National Pizza Day, we're taking a look at some of the growing occupations that help make pizza possible.

Overtime recovered

We recovered nearly $400,000 in unpaid wages and damages for Illinois grocery store employees.

WORKING FOR YOU

Ramping up efforts to protect workers before, during and after the Super Bowl

As thousands of football fans prepare for Super Bowl LVII in Arizona, human traffickers and unscrupulous employers seeking to profit from the exploitation of workers are also preparing for the big event. Here’s how we’re protecting workers before, during and after the game.

TWEET OF THE WEEK

A few toplines from @BLS_gov's January jobs report:Â

➕American economy added 517,000 jobs

📉Unemployment rate was 3.4% - the lowest since 1969

☑️12.1 million jobs added since @POTUS took office

️800,000 manufacturing jobs created in last two years

             -@SecMartyWalsh