Teamsters praise House passage of 'Made in America' bill

Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa on July 20 commended the U.S. House of Representatives for passing a bill that would train people for skilled jobs in emerging industries.

The Strengthening Employment Clusters To Organize Regional Success (SECTORS) Act passed by voice vote on July 19. The bill promotes specialized training programs for workers and help for them to find jobs in high-demand and emerging industries.

"The way out of our jobs crisis is to make things in America again," Hoffa said. "We have to rebuild our manufacturing base to bring back prosperity and security to working families in this country. American workers want to make and buy products that are made in America. I hope Congress will make this a top priority.”

The bill supports specialized training programs for critical industries. It authorizes grants for customized training programs to be created by educators, industry, unions and workforce boards. Targeted industries include manufacturing, health care, information technology and renewable energy.

Hoffa commended the bill's sponsor, Representative Dave Loebsack (D-Iowa), Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the House leadership for passing this important legislation.

Senators Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) have sponsored the Senate version of the bill.

Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents more than 1.4 million men and women in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.