COVID-19

WASHINGTON, DC – Chairman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) released the following statement after the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that the economy added 559,000 jobs in May with the unemployment rate at 5.8 percent. “Today’s job report shows that the Biden-Harris economic plan is working and, if fully implemented, will produce a strong, shared recovery that benefits all Americans. The American Rescue Plan provided immediate relief to students, workers, families, and businesses and delivered the resources necessary to defeat the pandemic. But today’s report also shows that we still have a long road ahead to make up for the millions of jobs lost over the past 16 months.

WASHINGTON, DC – Chairman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) released the following statement calling for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to do its job to protect workers from COVID-19. National Nurses United and the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union released statements citing concerns with the impact of CDC’s new guidance on workers. “One clear lesson from the last 16 months is that the honor system does not protect workers from COVID-19 infections.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Education and Labor Committee Chairman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) gave the following remarks to commemorate the 67th anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education at the American Bar Association Section of Civil Rights and Social Justice webinar, entitled “Brown at 67: Reflecting and Reimagining. Thank you all for inviting me today to join this important discussion. In the 67 years since Brown v. Board of Education, the Education and Labor Committee has played a key role in our nation’s progress t owards achieving the promise of educational equity.

WASHINGTON, DC – Chairman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03), Committee on Education and Labor, and Rep. Frank J. Mrvan (IN-01) introduced legislation to secure critical support for maritime workers who contract COVID-19. The Longshore and Harbor Workers’ COVID-19 Compensation Act of 2021 (H.R. 3114) makes longshore and harbor workers who are diagnosed with COVID-19 eligible for workers’ compensation by establishing a “conclusive presumption” that they contracted the virus at work. Hundreds of longshore and harbor workers across the country have contracted COVID-19 during the pandemic. The presumption in this legislation would apply retroactively to January 27, 2020, when the COVID-19 public health emergency was declared by the Department of Health Human Services.

WASHINGTON, DC – Chairman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (VA-03) released the following statement on International Nurses Day in remembrance of nurses who have died during the COVID-19 pandemic. “Today’s remembrance of nurses who have died from COVID-19 underscores the federal government’s failure to protect the professionals who have cared for us and our loved ones throughout the pandemic. More than 480,000 health care workers have contracted COVID-19 and more than 1,600 have tragically died, including more than 400 registered nurses.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Robert C. “Bobby” Scott, the Chairman of the Committee on Education and Labor, announced more than $147 million in emergency funding for colleges, universities, and students in Virginia’s 3rd Congressional District under the American Rescue Plan. The funding will help local institutions cope with the severe financial fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and continue serving their students safely. At least half of the funding each institution receives will be distributed in the form of emergency cash assistance grants to students who are facing hunger, homelessness, and other hardship.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Education and Labor Committee Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA), House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard E. Neal (D-NA), Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone Jr. (D-NJ), and Oversight and Reform Committee Chairwoman Carolyn B. Maloney (D-NY) applauded the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) decision to reinstate nondiscrimination protections for LGBTQ+ people and other marginalized communities, which the previous administration sought to undermine. The Chairs released the following statement: “We applaud the Biden administration’s decision to reinstate vital patient protections for LGBTQ+ people and other marginalized communities.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Education and Labor Committee Chairman Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA), Rep. Susan Wild (PA-07), and Rep. Susie Lee (NV03) introduced the Direct Creation, Advancement, and Retention of Employment (CARE) Opportunity Act, legislation that invests more than $1 billion over five years in training and increasing opportunities for our nation’s direct care workers. The Direct CARE Opportunity Act aligns with a key piece of the American Jobs Plan, which calls for significant investments to meet the surging demand for home and community-based services