Category: Employment

Rep. Davids votes to strengthen supply chains, boost American manufacturing and promote workforce development

U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, D-3rd Dist., recently voted to pass major economic legislation aimed at addressing current supply chain issues and promoting long-term American competitiveness.

The America Competes Act contains several of Davids’ priorities, including incentives for domestic semiconductor manufacturing, resources to strengthen supply chains and reduce inflation, and policies that will promote American global leadership among countries like China. Davids’ amendment also passed the House, ensuring that small and mid-sized manufacturers are given opportunities to participate in federal supply chain upgrades.

Speaking on the House floor last week, Rep. Davids drove home the need to address rising costs by making more goods in America, citing manufacturers in the Third District that stand ready to pitch in, hire, and train workers.

Rep. Davids’ speech is on YouTube at www.youtube.com/watch?v=6v1CCJcO6aU.

“For years, we have been too reliant on goods made in other countries. The pandemic has exacerbated and exposed that reality, with shortages from personal protective equipment to ventilators to semiconductor chips. Those supply chain weaknesses continue to contribute to rising prices and inflation,” Rep. Davids said. “We should be making more in America, and we have many small businesses in Kansas and across the country that are willing and able to step up to the plate.”

The America Competes Act includes a program to reexamine and update the Strategic National Stockpile supply chain to avoid medical equipment shortages during national emergencies, as we saw early in the pandemic. Davids’ amendment ensures that small and medium manufacturers are considered in that program, not just big corporations. She has been a champion of American manufacturing throughout the pandemic, introducing legislation last year that was inspired by the story of Lenexa-based manufacturer Dentec Safety Specialists. The Supplies Act would create a grant program for small and medium manufacturers that shift their production to manufacture PPE.

Additionally, the America Competes Act delivers incentives for domestic semiconductor, or “chip,” production. According to a Joint Economic Committee report, the U.S. has lost over a quarter of its manufacturing jobs since 2000, and production of critical materials like chips—which are used in computers, cars, washing machines, and more—has increasingly moved overseas. This shortage has been contributing to inflation and supply chain difficulties across industries. Rep. Davids recently visited local medical device suppliers who have been struggling to serve patients as their CPAP machines and oxygen monitors require chips and are delayed by the ongoing shortage.

“Chips are essential components of the things Kansans use every day, from cars to computers to CPAP machines, and the shortage has been driving prices up across industries. I voted to incentivize manufacturing of these crucial materials here at home, so we can start to bring down costs on those everyday items and bolster domestic manufacturing jobs,” Rep. Davids said.

“The Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce is excited to see the America Competes Act pass out of the U.S. House today and head to Conference Committee along with the already Senate-passed USICA. These bills are critical to advancing the technological capabilities of our nation while bringing new investments in research, innovation, and American manufacturing to the Greater Kansas City region,” said Joe Reardon, president and CEO of Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce, in a statement last week. “Particularly, the Chamber is happy that both bills establish a regional technology and innovation hub program that incentivizes collaborative partnerships to promote and support regional technology and innovation hubs. The Chamber will continue to advocate for those hubs to be included in the final bill on behalf of the Kansas City region. And we will continue to advocate for legislation that turbocharges our research capacity to lead the technologies of the future, solidifies and accelerates U.S. production of critical semiconductor chips, strengthens the supply chain to make more goods in America, and advances our global competitiveness.”

The America Competes Act has a bipartisan companion in the Senate and support from the National Association of Manufacturers and the AFL-CIO. A fact sheet on the America Competes Act is available here from the Joint Economic Committee, of which Davids is a member.

  • Story from Rep. Sharice Davids’ office

Kansas women struggling to re-enter workforce as affordable childcare remains scarce, report says

by Noah Taborda, Kansas Reflector

Topeka — New research from a women’s economic and civic advancement group and the University of Kansas draws connections between rising unemployment among women, difficulty accessing child care and the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Status of Women in Kansas report released Wednesday found the impacts of COVID-19 are disproportionately affecting women. Caregiving responsibilities, the closure of in-person schools and working from home have had a significant impact on women’s employment, report findings indicate.

For example, in the quarter before COVID-19, women accounted for 32% of unemployment claims, but after March 2020, women averaged 46% of the claims. The unemployment rate for women peaked at just over 16% in April 2020.

Wendy Doyle, president and CEO of United WE, said research from the McKinsey Global Institute showed increased women’s participation can lead to as much as a 10% to 15% increase in economic activity in the state.

“We have a long, 30-year history of investing in evidence-based research and data to drive nonpartisan policy solutions to reduce barriers for women and their families,” Doyle said. “When we reduce these barriers, it helps everyone, including our state’s economy, to flourish.”

The study follows up on a similar report from 2016 aimed at centering issues women in Kansas are facing. In response to the 2022 report, a women’s economic development task force is set to dive into issues of women’s participation in the workforce.

The Kansas Women’s Economic Development task force will conduct town halls across the state to hear firsthand from women about experiences and challenges before and after the onset of the pandemic. Panel work and town hall results will feed into a report with results, key findings and potential recommendations for policymakers and advocates to tackle.

“We are working right now to put (the task force) together and really have varied representation by geography and industry of women … to create awareness of the town halls to encourage women to participate and engage in the conversation,” Doyle said.

One major area in need of extra attention is a lack of access to affordable child care, which Donna Ginther, director of the Institute for Policy and Social Research at KU, said pushed many women out of the labor force during the pandemic. Now, she said, it is holding many women back from re-entering the workforce.

“Infant care is less affordable in Kansas than in other states,” Ginther said. “The average annual cost of infant care is about $11,000 a year, which is close to 30% of the median woman’s income in the state. So, if a woman works, and she wants to put her child in high-quality infant care, it’s going to be a third of her paycheck, and that’s too high.”

Ginther said high-quality child care costs are comparable to college tuition for in-state KU students. She noted that 300 licensed child care providers closed in 2020 in Kansas, making cost and accessibility growing issues.

The report also indicated that for every dollar earned by a man in Kansas, women made only 78 cents in 2020. This is less than the national average of $0.82 per dollar.

“Factual data is the first step in telling an accurate story of the lives of Kansas women,” Ginther said. “This research validates the importance of removing barriers and advocating for policies that support women, ultimately making families and communities healthier and the economy stronger.”

Kansas Reflector stories, www.kansasreflector.com, may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.
See more at https://kansasreflector.com/2022/02/02/kansas-women-struggling-to-re-enter-workforce-as-affordable-childcare-remains-scarce-reports-says/

Job picture is improving, according to Rep. Davids and Workforce officials

U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, left, visited with Workforce Partnership employees on Tuesday. (Photo from Rep. Davids’ office)
U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, right, visited with Workforce Partnership employees on Tuesday. (Photo from Rep. Davids’ office)

U.S. Rep. Sharice Davids, D-3rd Dist., toured Workforce Partnership Tuesday and sat down with the executive director to learn about the services they provide for both job seekers and employers in the Greater Kansas City Area.

With career centers in Johnson, Leavenworth and Wyandotte counties, Workforce Partnership offers professional expertise and funding resources to employers and eligible job seekers. Rep. Davids currently serves as the chair of the Small Business Subcommittee on Economic Growth, Tax, and Capital Access.

“The services provided by Workforce Partnership are exactly what our community needs to make sure employers can fill jobs and employees are supported, empowered, and uplifted,” Rep. Davids said. “I know many people in our community have changed career paths or had trouble hiring as a result of the pandemic. With the help of vaccinations, federal support, and local programs like Workforce Partnership, unemployment is decreasing and people are getting back to work. It was a pleasure to join Keely and her team today to see their work in action.”

During the tour, Rep. Davids stopped by the onsite Youth Center and met with Keely Schneider, executive director of Workforce Partnership, to hear about their job seeker services, employer services, and labor market data research.

Schneider highlighted the new RetainWorks Program, designed to assist individuals with temporary or permanent disability return to work, and the soon-to-launch RespectWorks Program, designed to provide intensive case management and career navigation for individuals released from the prison system in Kansas.

“Many people think that local workforce boards are only relevant when unemployment is high and job seekers are plentiful. On the contrary, workforce boards provide vital services to employers when the labor market is tight, like it is currently,” said Keely Schneider, executive director of Workforce Partnership. “Workforce Partnership is able to tap into talent pools that often go overlooked in a more balanced marketplace – such as individuals with criminal backgrounds or disabilities, or people who may not speak English well. Representative Davids understands that creation of highly skilled jobs is not only vital to our regional economic growth, but also a solid recipe for individual prosperity.”

2021 saw the sharpest one-year drop in unemployment in United States history, equaling 3.9% in December, while a total of 6.4 million new jobs were added, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Wages also rose in December, with the average hourly pay jumping 4.7% compared to a year ago.

Rep. Davids has supported bills in Congress that help employers and employees in the 3rd District, including:

• Introduced the Women’s Business Centers Improvement Act, which would increase access to resources and opportunities for female entrepreneurs in Kansas and across the country;
• Introduced two bipartisan bills, which passed the House, to help improve the Small Business Administration’s 504 Loan Program, which provides long-term, fixed rate financing for small businesses;
• Voted to pass the American Rescue Plan, which provided targeted relief to Kansans through a stronger Paycheck Protection Program, extended pandemic-related unemployment benefits, and grants to hard-hit industries such as restaurants and entertainment venues;
• Voted to pass the bipartisan infrastructure law, which is expected to bring $3.8 billion to Kansas for infrastructure needs and will put 30,000 construction workers on the job in the Kansas City area;
• Announced the SBA Kansas City District Office reached $1.2 million in funding to small businesses in the Kansas Third District through 186 traditional loans for fiscal year 2021, creating 10,662 jobs in Kansas and Missouri.

  • Photos and story from Rep. Sharice Davids’ office