0
Essential Workers for Economic Advancement Act
12/29/2022, 10:03 PM
Summary of Bill HR 7239
The bill includes provisions for expanding access to affordable childcare for essential workers, as well as increasing funding for workforce development programs to help essential workers gain new skills and qualifications. Additionally, the bill aims to improve workplace safety standards for essential workers and ensure that they have access to necessary personal protective equipment.
Furthermore, the Essential Workers for Economic Advancement Act includes measures to increase the minimum wage for essential workers and provide them with paid sick leave and other benefits. The bill also seeks to address disparities in pay and working conditions for essential workers, particularly those in low-wage industries. Overall, the Essential Workers for Economic Advancement Act is designed to recognize the contributions of essential workers and provide them with the support they need to thrive in the post-pandemic economy. It represents a bipartisan effort to address the challenges faced by essential workers and ensure that they are able to achieve economic advancement and stability.
Congressional Summary of HR 7239
Essential Workers for Economic Advancement Act
This bill establishes a new nonimmigrant visa for temporary nonagricultural workers (H-2C visa) to fill jobs that have remained open for a certain amount of time and are located in an area where the unemployment rate is 7.9% or less. This visa shall only be available for certain occupations, and those requiring a bachelor's degree or higher level of education shall not be eligible.
The bill imposes various requirements related to H-2C positions, such as requiring that the employer make certain efforts to recruit a U.S. worker beforehand. The employer must register the opening before filling it with an H-2C worker, and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shall maintain a publicly available registry of registered positions.
For the first fiscal year after the bill's enactment, no more than 65,000 positions may be registered. For subsequent fiscal years, the number shall be increased or decreased depending on how many positions were registered the previous year and how quickly the allotment was filled. A certain number of allocations shall be reserved for small businesses.
An employer seeking to hire H-2C workers shall register with DHS and provide documentation establishing that the employer meets various qualifications. An employer may become ineligible for registration for certain actions, such as having been penalized for a pattern of willful violation of wage and hour laws.
H-2C workers shall not be entitled to certain federal public benefits.
The Bureau of the Census shall report to Congress on the impact of the H-2C program.
