A Year of Action
A Year of Action
In his 2014 State of the Union address, President Obama affirmed that this would be “a year of action” to help ensure opportunity for all Americans.
President Obama is Taking Action
In the two weeks since his State of the Union Address, President Obama has already announced progress on four of the proposals he announced he would act on.
Today, he is taking action on a fifth proposal by issuing an Executive Order to raise the minimum wage for federal contractors. Learn more below.
Tell the President You're InMIDDLE CLASS SECURITY AND OPPORTUNITY AT WORK
Raising the Minimum Wage
The President will raise the minimum wage for federal contractors to $10.10, because no one who works full-time should have to live in poverty.
Helping Americans Retire with Dignity
The President directed the Treasury Department to create “myRA,” a new starter savings account that will help millions of Americans begin saving for their retirement.
Building 21st-Century Workplaces
The White House will co-host a Summit on Working Families to set an agenda for transforming America’s workplaces. Revamping workplace policies in areas such as discrimination, flexibility, and paid leave will make our workplaces more inclusive to working families and ensure America’s global economic competitiveness in the coming decades.
President Obama will continue calling on Congress to:
1: Raise the minimum wage to $10.10 for all American workers.
2: Ensure women get equal pay for equal work by passing paycheck fairness
3: Extend emergency unemployment insurance for Americans who are looking for work.
4: Reward hard work by expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit.
5: Remove retirement tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans and improve them for the middle class.
6: Protect LGBT workers by passing the Employment Non-Discrimination Act.
JOBS AND ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY
Investing in High-Tech Manufacturing
The President will launch four new manufacturing innovation institutes this year. These institutes bring together companies, universities and community colleges, and government to co-invest in the development of world-leading manufacturing technologies and capabilities that U.S.-based manufacturers can apply in production.
Training America’s Workers
The President is directing the Vice President to lead a full review of the federal job-training system to ensure job-training programs are high-quality and lead to well-paying jobs.
Helping the Long-Term Unemployed
The President is partnering with CEOs and other business leaders to get long-term unemployed Americans back to work. More than 300 companies have already signed onto new best practices for recruiting and hiring the long-term unemployed.
Expanding Apprenticeships
The President will call on business leaders, community colleges, mayors, governors, and labor leaders to increase the number of U.S. apprenticeships. Through on-the-job training, apprenticeships give young workers a path to well-paying careers and help American businesses better compete in the global marketplace.
Increasing Fuel Efficiency
The Administration will set new fuel-efficiency standards for heavy-duty vehicles and propose new incentives for medium- and heavy-duty trucks that run on alternative fuels like natural gas – benefiting our planet, our economy, and our energy security.
Cutting Carbon Pollution
President Obama directed his Administration to work with states, cities, and tribes to cut harmful carbon pollution by developing clean energy and energy efficiency policies.
President Obama will continue calling on Congress to:
1: Reform business taxes and end tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas.
2: Fix America’s broken immigration system.
3: Invest in economic growth while continuing to strengthen America’s long-term fiscal position.
4: Open new markets for American-made products.
5: Support America’s job creators through a small business and entrepreneurship agenda.
6: Expand fuel choices for American drivers.
Educational Opportunity
Connecting Our Classrooms
President Obama’s ConnectED initiative will connect 99% of U.S. students to next-generation broadband and wireless technology within five years. This connectivity will empower America’s students through individualized learning and rich, digital content.
Increasing College Opportunity
The President is asking colleges, universities, nonprofits, and businesses to develop ways to improve students’ access to and completion of higher education, because a college education is a prerequisite for 21st-century jobs.
Redesigning High Schools
The President is challenging schools to scale up innovative models that will redesign and personalize teaching and learning for students, in order to teach these students the skills they will need in college and beyond.
President Obama will continue calling on Congress to:
1: Make high-quality preschool available to all American children.
2: Transform America’s high schools to ensure students are college and career ready.
