Gov. Evers Delivers Radio Address on Special Session to Address State’s Chronic Workforce Challenges

Audio File of Radio Address.

MADISON — Gov. Tony Evers today delivered the Democratic Radio Address on his announcement this week, calling a special session of the Wisconsin State Legislature at 12 p.m. on Wed., Sept. 20, 2023, to complete their work on the 2023-25 biennial budget and pass a meaningful, comprehensive plan to address the state’s longstanding, generational workforce challenges. More information on the governor’s workforce plan is available here.

Hey there, folks. Governor Tony Evers here.

While Wisconsin began this biennium in the best fiscal position in its 175-year statehood, we know employers across the state continue to face significant, generational challenges filling available jobs.

But thanks to my strategic line-item vetoes in the budget, I’ve ensured ample state resources are readily available for legislators to address the most pressing issues facing our state.

So, this week, I called a special session of the Legislature next month on September 20 to complete their work on the budget.

My comprehensive workforce plan invests more than $365 million to help prevent our child care industry from collapsing. I’m also proposing to expand paid family and medical leave in Wisconsin for working families.

My plan also supports higher education to educate, train, and retain and recruit talented workers, including over $66 million for our University of Wisconsin System and over $40 million for our Wisconsin Technical College System.

And my plan targets high-need sectors and industries, including $160 million for solutions to our healthcare workforce shortages and more than $16 million to address the teacher shortage and bolster educator pipelines.

We must work together in the coming weeks so we can bolster our state’s workforce, maintain our economic momentum, and most importantly, do the right thing for Wisconsin.

An online version of this release is available here.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.

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