How the Biden-Harris administration facilitated job and union growth

David Madland, Senior Fellow and Senior Adviser for the American Worker Project at the Center for American Progress, joined the America’s Work Force Union Podcast to discuss the impact that legislation passed under the Biden-Harris administration has had on job creation and union growth.

The Biden-Harris administration has pushed several pieces of critical legislation during their first term. However, many of the investments that are coming from the federal legislation are harder to understand, leading to a misunderstanding over how jobs were created. Madland discussed the research that went in to crafting his report on the jobs created by Biden-Harris legislation. During his research Madland visited several job sites around the country to ask workers if they knew how the jobs were created, and it became more evident that his research questions turned into an educational opportunity. He said that several of the workers didn’t know the jobs and projects they were working came from Biden-Harris initiatives.

Madland then discussed the Made in America legislation and how it has improved the amount of money and jobs coming to rural communities. One concern with the jobs being created in the manufacturing industry is whether they will go to union workers. Madland discussed the lack of regulation that would encourage the use of unions on manufacturing jobs that have been created through Biden-Harris initiatives.

Over the past few years, there has been a noticeable increase in pro-union sentiment and more people voting to join unions. After decades of wage stagnation and then the pandemic, non-union workers have become more aware of their lack of protections. Madland explained how the uptick in pro-union sentiment has led to a growth in wages across the country. To help facilitate the union growth, he added that the legislation proposed by the Biden-Harris administration will push the labor movement further forward.

For more from Madland, please listen to the show above.