Thune, Colleagues Reintroduce 5G Workforce Bill

Five U.S. Senators, led by John Thune (R-SD), Tuesday reintroduced the Telecommunications Skilled Workforce Act, legislation to address the shortage of trained workers necessary to fill next-generation jobs in telecom. S. 3355 is aimed at encouraging apprenticeships to grow a workforce adept at building 5G wireless networks.

Last year’s bill called for the Labor secretary to issue guidance to states on how to bolster these workforce efforts, in consultation with the FCC chair. The new version puts the FCC in charge of doing that, in consultation with the Labor secretary.

An FCC-led interagency working group, in consultation with the Department of Labor (DOL) and other federal and non-federal stakeholders, would develop recommendations to address the workforce shortage. The group is expanded under the new measure and would identify federal resources available to states for workforce development efforts. Continue Reading