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Rep. Sánchez Introduces Bill to Help Women Access to High Wage, High Skill Work

April 10, 2008

WASHINGTON, DC -- Congresswoman Linda Sánchez (D-Lakewood) introduced the "Pathways Advancing Career Training Act" today to help unemployed and underemployed women gain access to training for good jobs that can support a family.

The PACT Act would provide assistance to state programs that train women for employment in high-skill, high-wage fields where they are often underrepresented. Congresswoman Sánchez' bill would support programs that address barriers to employment for single parents, displaced homemakers, and divorced and widowed women re-entering the workforce after extended periods of time at home caring for family members.

"Nearly 7.5 million U.S. children living in poverty reside in female-headed households, and we have a responsibility to help those most in need," Congresswoman Sánchez said. "If we are committed to the idea that every woman and child should have access to the American dream, we need programs to provide good job training. These programs provide women with a better economic future."

At current rates, the U.S. will require 15 million workers with postsecondary training in the next two decades, but will add just 3 million workers with this level of training. This bill offers a pragmatic solution to this looming skilled labor shortage by targeting a relatively untapped section of the current and potential workforce.

Congresswoman Sánchez is the only Democrat from the greater Los Angeles area who serves on the House Committee on Education and Labor. She co-founded the Labor and Working Families Caucus and, as a former union leader, Congresswoman Sánchez has been a consistent champion for women in the workforce.