The call yesterday (Tuesday, August 8) by Governor Evers for a special session of the state Legislature to address workforce development and child care issues affecting families in Milwaukee and across the state is right on the money, and comes at the right time.
We firmly support the Governor’s call for a September 20 special session of the Legislature to take up a $1 billion workforce development package that includes $365 million to support our vital child care providers. The proposal would use a chunk of the state’s projected $4 billion surplus in this biennium, and includes a paid family and medical leave program for private employers, as well as a new investment in higher education.
The package is needed to prevent the looming collapse of the state’s child care industry, while ensuring child care is more affordable and accessible for working parents and families. It would also expand paid family leave, invest in higher education to help educate, train, retain, and recruit talented workers, and support solutions to workforce challenges in high-need areas, specifically the state’s healthcare and education workforce sectors.
We believe this investment package will support caregivers, allow more women to return to the workforce, and better stabilize child care throughout Milwaukee.
We urge the Legislature to use the special session to support families and to make sure our critical workforce challenges are not kicked down the road and unaddressed.
