BRAXTON’S PLAN TO MAKE NORTH CAROLINA THE #1 STATE FOR BUSINESS AND WORKERS

North Carolina should be the #1 state for business and workers.

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As the next Commissioner of Labor, I will support North Carolina’s working families and businesses by:

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1. ensuring that all workers go to work in a safe environment.

2. fighting for all people to be paid fairly under North Carolina labor laws.

3. making it a priority that our workforce is fully staffed to uphold public safety.

4. closing the digital divide and training our next workforce.

5. defending workers rights wherever they find work​​.

6. taking a whole-worker approach.

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1. WORKPLACE SAFETY

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All work, from factories to classrooms, should be done in a safe working environment.

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We should strive to eliminate fatalities and injuries in North Carolina workplaces. As Commissioner of Labor I will:

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• work with employers and employees to promote and grow cultures of safety.

• collaborate with the North Carolina General Assembly to appropriately fund and strengthen the Occupational Safety & Health Division (OSH) and other compliance departments.

• team up with employers and employees to amplify preventative practices across industries.

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2. FAIR WAGES

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The Labor Commissioner has an important role in helping to ensure that North Carolina workers are earning their fair share of wages as determined by the law.

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Why It Matters: Whether they are construction workers building our cities or meatpackers from out east, North Carolina’s laborers deserve to feel confident that they are bringing home a fair day’s pay.

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As Commissioner of Labor, I will prioritize:

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• informing all workers of their rights under the law.

• ensuring businesses are following North Carolina’s fair wage laws and rules.

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We must promote a fair market amongst business owners who are competing for the same workers within industries.

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3. FULLY STAFF OUR WORKFORCE TO UPHOLD PUBLIC SAFETY

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​The Problem: Employers are finding it increasingly more difficult to find enough workers to staff their businesses since the pandemic.

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• There are not enough employees to dependably fill shifts across the board - whether in our service and hospitality industries or logistics professionals.

• This constrains the ability for companies to grow and is detrimental to existing workers who bear additional dangerous burdens at work.

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For Example: Currently, even the North Carolina Department of Labor is struggling to fully staff its team – 25 of the 108 compliance officer roles that are budgeted for are vacant.

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• It is vital that we have a fully staffed compliance officer team at the Department of Labor so that every roller coaster, every ski lift, every ride at every county fair across the state that involves moving pieces of equipment, is inspected correctly and as often as it should be.

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The Solution: As the next Commissioner of Labor, I would make it a top priority to close this gap and ensure that these life-saving inspections continue across the state. I would work with leaders in business, labor unions, personnel services, and in communities across the state to make sure we are doing everything possible to match our workforce with available jobs – many of which provide local residents access to the middle-class right out of high school.

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We must approach the challenges in the labor market as opportunities to take the “whole-worker approach” and connect our local workforce with a better quality of life through a good-paying job.

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4. CLOSING THE DIGITAL DIVIDE AND TRAINING OUR NEXT WORKFORCE

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Being digitally connected means more than just having internet.

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1.1 million North Carolina households lack access to high-speed internet, cannot afford it, and/or do not have the skills needed to utilize the digital economy.

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The Problem: Accessibility, Affordability, and Training

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• Nearly 30% of these 1.1M households lack access to a high-speed internet connection due to inadequate infrastructure, and 19% of households with children do not have high-speed internet subscriptions.

  • At least 122,000 (4%) of urban households and 43,000 (35%) of rural households do not have adequate infrastructure.

• Roughly 50% are priced out of internet access.

• Many lack the digital skills required to take advantage of applying for a job on an online job board or studying and excelling in online apprenticeships and training.

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The Solution: Make equitable investments so workers can find their way into the workforce and ensure both urban and rural communities achieve digital equity through public-private partnerships like the:

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• American Rescue Plan (ARP) - Governor Cooper proposed investing $1.2 billion of these federal ARP funds into infrastructure and access, affordability, and digital literacy.

• Internet for All planning grants - NC received $6.4 million to plan for the deployment and adoption of affordable, equitable, and reliable high-speed internet service throughout the state.

• Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) funding - NC anticipates to receive $100 million. 

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To achieve digital equity, we must ensure all North Carolinians, regardless of their zip code, have access to jobs, training, and education both physically and digitally. And we have the funding to make real strides. As your next Commissioner of Labor, I will advocate for every North Carolinian’s access to the high-speed internet they need to participate in the jobs of today while preparing for the workplaces of tomorrow.

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5. DEFENDING WORKERS RIGHTS WHEREVER THEY FIND WORK

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There are a lot of different jobs, and just as many different workplaces in our state.

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Why It Matters: Different jobs call for different skills and different demands of workers. Regardless of the differences in job descriptions and demands, all workers have rights and protections as workers in our state.

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Whether workers are at home or on assembly lines, I will work with advocates to inform and educate our workforces on their rights and how to take action if those rights are violated.

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6. TAKING A WHOLE-WORKER APPROACH

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The Department of Labor has an important role in our state to ensure community safety.

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In addition to the core responsibilities of inspecting and ensuring the safety of several elements of everyday life like elevators, amusement park rides, and lifting devices for people with disabilities, the Commissioner of Labor can build bridges across our state’s diverse communities and make them safer by taking a whole-worker approach.

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We can work with our partners to sustain resilient workforces by:

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• providing dependable access to transportation. As Commissioner of Labor, I will work with public and private partners in our local communities to take advantage of the historic Federal infrastructure resources on behalf of North Carolina workers. Communities that are accessible empower their workers – and these same communities become desirable for businesses to come to and workers to live in. Dependable access to work advances economic development.

• uplifting populations destabilized due to interactions with the criminal justice system. The best way to keep people out of cycles of recidivism is to ensure they are able to secure a job. By making training more readily available for the future workforce, more people will have the ability to become employed.

• creating apprenticeship opportunities and fostering mentor-mentee relationships with our young people. By creating continuums of wisdom we can ensure that the future workforce of North Carolina continues to fuel the growth of our state.

  • Nurturing these relationships connects North Carolina residents to opportunities, information, and resources and demonstrates to every worker that their contributions are vital to the success of our state.

  • Everyone in NC lives within 30 miles of a Community College. There is opportunity to reach every North Carolinian and fill critical infrastructure and supply-chain jobs by investing in work-based learning programs in our NC Community College System.

  • Labor Unions and organizations offer workers opportunities through the entirety of their careers. From apprenticeships to continuing training opportunities for workers navigating their careers, unions are a resource. We will work with the labor movement so both workers and employers across our state understand the benefits of a collectively bargained contract.

• eliminating homelessness in North Carolina with a focus on our veteran population. We must ensure that our veterans and their families have on-ramps to jobs when their sacrifices to our state and nation are complete.

• securing employers and contractors to NC’s urban and rural communities who commit to hiring local residents and will provide thriving, wage paying, career-path jobs.

• working with partners to provide paths to home ownership for working residents to help them to accumulate wealth and stabilize communities.