Spotlight On: Jennifer Berrier, Secretary, Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry

Spotlight On: Jennifer Berrier, Secretary, Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry

2022-08-08T12:40:20-04:00August 8th, 2022|Economy, Philadelphia, Spotlight On|

3 min read August 2022In an interview with Invest:, Jennifer Berrier, secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry, talked about some of the initiatives that are underway to provide residents with equitable access to jobs of the future and to upskill them so they can earn family-supporting wages. She highlights pending legislation and investments that will ensure industries coming to the region have the workforce needed to thrive.

What have been some highlights from the last 12 months? 

The department has been very busy over this past year. We were crushed with unemployment compensation claims at the height of the pandemic and we are still dealing with the fallout from that by processing the remaining claims. During this last year we went live with a modernized benefits system that replaced our 50-year-old legacy system. We are one of the first large states to update and modernize our system.

We are also working on the SkillUp PA initiative which is essentially free training available 24/7 for public use. It offers users the capability of accessing over 5,000 modules across courses that range from soft skill training to specialized IT and HR. We have also been working to issue digital literacy grants to make sure individuals have equitable access to job opportunities. We are working with community partners to hit those digital deserts and those areas where people are underserved so we can help skill them up. This means they will be able to enter the workforce and earn family sustaining wages. 

Gov. Wolf issued a worker protection and investment Executive Order. Within that we are conducting a study to analyze the potential of expanding OSHA protections in Pennsylvania to include public employees. The safeguards of OSHA standards have protected private-sector workers in Pennsylvania for 50 years. The study, which will be completed this fall, will give us a roadmap to making those protections universal to all Pennsylvania workers. And one of our latest regulatory actions was to update our Minimum Wage Act regulations. The regulations were not updated in 40 years, so we wanted to revise them to offer further protections. This issue impacts primarily workers that depend on tips or gratuities and the changes ensure they are taking home what they earn. 

What are some key challenges facing the state? 

One of the biggest challenges I am hearing is about the labor market tightness. There are a lot of open positions out there, but we have found that, nationally, there are actually 0.5 unemployed people per job opening, meaning the workforce is not sufficient to fill the jobs that are out there. The pandemic definitely sped up this shift with the Baby Boomer generation retiring at a faster rate, and there are still many barriers to employment, such as childcare concerns. We have significant childcare deserts across the state, and it makes it difficult for families and particularly women to be engaged in the workforce. 

Our labor force participation rate is down one point from pre-pandemic levels. We are finding that the state has regained most of the jobs lost to the pandemic but trying to find skilled people is the existing challenge. Philadelphia lags slightly behind in job recovery. Currently, the city has recovered 76% of the jobs lost, compared with the state rate of 85%. Equitable access to job resources and benefits is critical right now as we realize there is a skills gap exacerbated by the pandemic. We are also concerned about the risk of automation. Out of 50 of the most in-demand jobs at the moment, 26% are more than 50% likely to require automation in the future. We therefore have to make sure we are equipping people with the skills for future employment and long-term careers. 

What are some of the distinguishing qualities of the state and Philadelphia? 

I like to think of Philadelphia as the cultural mecca of the state, and with 1.5 million residents it is the largest city in the state. One of the largest sectors that exist in the city is educational services. We have a number of world-class schools that allow companies access to a steady stream of graduates, which is particularly important for key industries such as medical research. It is a great place to headquarter a company because of the workforce availability. Historically the movement to unionize began in Philadelphia so it is a labor strong city with hardworking people. 

What legislation or regulations are you keeping your eye on? 

Federally we have a lot going on with the COVID-related funding that the states were given. There have been historical investments in education, healthcare and childcare so I think those will be great at breaking down barriers to equitable access to employment. Nationally, we have the infrastructure bill funding to upgrade our roads, bridges and invest in broadband. On the state side we are looking at Unemployment Compensation system reform. One of the things we saw during the pandemic was that our UC law was bogged down by red tape, so we made some suggestions through HB 549 to ease the process for claimants receiving benefits. We are hopeful the General Assembly will take action on this issue, as the department cannot make these necessary changes unilaterally. Another thing we are watching is the OSHA legislation for the public sector.

How do you see the landscape changing and evolving? 

We do a lot of work with Philadelphia Works and fund many exciting industry partnerships opportunities as well, so we know there are a lot of burgeoning industries in healthcare, manufacturing, hospitality and entertainment. The city is definitely on the upswing, and we are seeing progress across the city. Notably, the investments being made at the Navy Yard mean it is becoming an incubator for biomedical firms.

We have made significant investment in the apprenticeship model for upskilling and training employees. It gives individuals hands-on education and allows them to earn while they learn. Historically that only happened in the building trades, but we are exploring and broadening that model to non-traditional trades in various industries like IT, childcare, healthcare and so on.

What is your outlook for the next two to three years? 

We know that Philadelphia is growing. We have some work to do to make sure we have the individuals with the skills required for the companies coming to build up the area to spur economic growth. As long as we continue making strategic investments in the workforce and ensure people have the skills and resources they need, we are on the road to success. 

For more information, visit:
https://www.dli.pa.gov/

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