US Department of Labor announces programs to support Biden-Harris administration’s Justice40 initiative

To support the Biden-Harris administration’s progress in advancing environmental justice, the U.S. Department of Labor has added programs to the Justice40 initiative. The Justice40 initiative aims to deliver 40 percent of the overall benefits of climate, clean energy, training and workforce development, and other federal investments to disadvantaged communities.

In January 2021, President Biden’s Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad directed all federal departments to review programs for inclusion in the Justice40 initiative as part of a whole-of-government initiative to advance environmental justice.

The department added the following existing programs to the Justice40 initiative, all of which are administered by its Employment and Training Administration:

• Reentry Employment Opportunities program
• YouthBuild program
• Job Corps
• Workforce Opportunity for Rural Communities program.

“Achieving broad-based economic equity, environmental justice, and good jobs for all is an opportunity that we are privileged to have, and proud to take action on,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh. “The programs selected for this groundbreaking effort are proven sustainable pathways for communities facing environmental injustices. Their impact will be strengthened by their inclusion in President Biden’s coordinated, whole-of-government Justice40 initiative.” 

In total, hundreds of federal programs, representing billions of dollars in annual investments across the federal government, are being reimagined and transformed to maximize benefits to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized, underserved and overburdened by pollution.

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