This report outlines the Biden-Harris Administration’s strategy to strengthening worker power, organizing, and collective bargaining, including a comprehensive list of the executive actions recommended as part of this strategy. The recommendations focus on three core areas: positioning the federal government as a model employer, enhancing transparency and worker education on their organizing rights, and utilizing purchasing power to favor employers with strong labor standards. Key initiatives include strengthening compliance with existing labor laws, improving reporting on anti-union activity, and facilitating first contracts for newly organized units. The report also addresses systemic issues like worker misclassification, advocates for legislative reform such as the PRO Act, and emphasizes the deep, unfulfilled demand for union representation, noting that nearly 60 million American workers would join a union if given the chance. While the report is now outdated in terms of federal policy, it continues to be a useful guide to strategies that could be taken by policymakers, employers, or advocates to overcome decades of declining union density and diminished worker voice, and may be especially relevant for policymakers and the state and local levels who aim to implement pro-worker policies.

This is part of a collection of resources created by the Department of Labor and other federal agencies, relating to job quality and implementing good jobs priorities through federal investments and beyond. Many of these resources are no longer publicly available on government websites, though they were all at one point public and shared with the intent of preserving these resources for public use.

Please note that we cannot guarantee that information contained in these resources related to specific programs, policies, and processes remains accurate, though many best practices and examples remain useful. In addition, many of these resources link out to government websites that do not exist anymore. You may be able to find these linked resources in the archive itself by searching the Overview document. For more resources, please visit the Data Rescue Project website, at https://www.datarescueproject.org/

This research brief and landscape analysis focuses on pervasive racial disparities in elements of job quality (e.g., pay, health & safety, adequate hours) and some of the causes behind them. The authors pull together research on established laws, institutional practices, and cultural norms (e.g., occupational segregation, nonstandard work arrangements like the independent contractor classification, hiring discrimination) to create a cohesive narrative outlining how these structures have resulted in systemic disadvantages and discrimination for workers of color, particularly Black workers. These racial disparities not only persist today but were magnified during the ongoing COVID-19 and resulting racial reckoning. Individuals involved in work influencing policy decisions and institutional practices to improve labor market opportunities for workers of color may find this resource helpful.

While California boasts a strong economy by many measures of growth, too many Californians have not enjoyed the benefits of the state’s broader economic success and the extraordinary wealth generated. As the nation grapples with demographic and geographic economic inequities that have been growing over the first two decades of the 21st century, and that have been exacerbated in this time of national crisis, what does the Golden State plan to do so that workers of every race, ethnicity, geography and gender have what they need to support themselves and their families, and thrive now and in the future?

Established prior to the COVID crisis, California’s Future of Work Commission has been tasked with confronting this question. It aims to create a new social compact for California workers, based on an expansive vision for economic equity that takes work and jobs as the starting point. We invite you to join this discussion and hear firsthand what California is doing to build a brighter future of work.

Among the many unexpected lessons of 2020 was a recognition of the importance of essential workers. We saw how much we rely on the people who work in our food systems, who care for our children and our loved ones, who deliver packages, and who keep our public spaces clean. We learned to say thank you to so many of them, and in this season of thanks, we reflect on how we can do more than say thank you by improving the quality of essential jobs. As the year drew to a close, we discussed the important role of essential workers in our economy and society and a variety of approaches for improving essential work

This op-ed discusses the important role of essential workers and how coming out of the pandemic, we can ensure their contributions are fully recognized and valued.

This set of principles provides guidance for COVID-19 policy responses that center equity and longer-term stability and prosperity–which remains relevant in the context of COVID-19 recovery and as a resource for understanding community needs after societal shocks. Policymakers and practitioners seeking to support workers and job quality may be particularly interested in the sections at the bottom of the page related to investing in community infrastructure and building an equitable economy.

This profile describes Linda Nguyen’s efforts to establish Community Benefits Agreements (CBAs) during her tenure with Jobs to Move America, a policy advocacy organization. JMA has taken an innovative approach to CBAs, developing contracts with businesses that receive public infrastructure funding. This resource can be useful for practitioners exploring different ways to structure CBAs to support quality jobs as well as those interested in the intersection of job quality and environmental advocacy.

This white paper provides a primer on open-book management, an approach to sharing financial information with workers to strengthen decision-making. Topics covered include the basics of open-book management, benefits and challenges associated with this strategy, and actionable steps that companies can take to apply open-book management in their business. This resource may be particularly helpful for employers and business support organizations interested in strengthening employee engagement and involving workers in a broader range of decisions.

This series, informed by local job quality initiatives, can support workforce development professionals interested in beginning or strengthening engagement with employers to improve job quality. The reports are organized around three areas: 1) Strategies for Resourcing Job Quality Initiatives, with a focus on co-investment strategies with employers; 2) Practitioner competencies that can support staff engaged in job quality efforts with employers; and 3) Employer readiness characteristics to consider when determining employer partners. The last report also includes a link to a resource to help practitioners navigate employer resistance to change efforts. This series may also be useful for others interested in partnering on local job quality efforts, including economic development professionals and employers.

The Employer Engagement Question Bank is designed to help workforce professionals engage in conversations with businesses to support the job seekers they work with. This tool can be used to learn about a business with an eye toward providing workforce services, developing expertise about industry norms and practices, and building relationships that build credibility in discussions about strategies for promoting worker retention and advancement. The tool includes questions to build understanding of the business, its workforce needs, and a range of job quality factors including compensation, opportunities for advancement, and equity and inclusion. Workforce development practioners and other professionals who support workers can adapt the tool to meet their employer engagement goals.