The people who work in the communications industries.
Labor
Closing the Digital Skills Divide: The Payoff for Workers, Business, and the Economy
Even before the coronavirus pandemic began, policymakers, businesses, and workforce advocates were already recognizing that workers were not being replaced by robots, but rather, being called upon to work hand-in-glove with rapidly evolving technology. Now — as leaders design labor market policies to drive a thriving and inclusive economy — it is imperative to understand this digital transformation. The analysis finds the following:
Comcast’s workforce shrank, Charter’s grew in 2022
Comcast exited 2022 with several thousand fewer employees than it had the year prior, but cable rival Charter Communications significantly expanded its own workforce over the same period. The changes highlight the different approaches the operators are taking to cut costs and drive efficiency as macroeconomic challenges mount. It’s not necessarily a surprise that Comcast’s employee count dropped given the operator confirmed layoffs in its cable field organization and media divisions in recent months.
Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL) Announces First Awards Through Broadband Opportunity Program
Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL) announced the first set of awards through the Broadband Opportunity Grant Program to expand access to broadband internet for Florida’s underserved communities.
Rep. Walberg (R-MI) Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Expand Telehealth Benefits for American Workers
Congressman Tim Walberg (R-MI) introduced the Telehealth Benefit Expansion for Workers Act (H.R.824), bipartisan legislation which would expand access to telehealth services by classifying these services as an excepted benefit for employer-sponsored health coverage.
House Republicans Vote to Turn Back Time on Telework Policies
The House voted 221-206, mostly along party lines, to pass legislation requiring federal agencies to revert to their pre-pandemic telework policies, although the measure is likely to meet stiff resistance in the Democratically controlled Senate. The Stopping Home Office Work’s Unproductive Problems Act (H.R. 139), introduced by Rep. James Comer (R-KY), would require agencies to “reinstate and apply the telework policies, practices and levels . . . in effect on December 31, 2019” within 30 days of the bill’s enactment.
Digital Literacy and Resilience, Request for Information
The US Department of Labor (DOL) is requesting information on successful approaches related to digital skills attainment and competency development in education and training efforts, the strategies our education and workforce development systems are employing to assess and ensure individuals are digitally resilient, and any challenges the education and public workforce systems are facing. DOL is also requesting information on strategies to advance digital equity and inclusion in the workforce.
FCC's Telecom Interagency Working Group Releases Report on Workforce Needs
Telecommunications infrastructure will be built, operated, maintained, and upgraded over time by a well-trained, highly skilled, workforce of broadband industry professionals—tower climbers and technicians, fiber optic technicians and fiber splicers, RF engineers, overhead and underground utility installers, small cell technicians, trencher and heavy equipment operators, and many others.
Evaluating the impact of broadband access and internet use in a small underserved rural community
Despite increased investment in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, millions of households in the rural United States still lack adequate access to high-speed internet. In this study, we evaluate a wireless broadband network deployed in Turney, a small, underserved rural community in northwest Missouri. In addition to collecting survey data before and after this internet intervention, we collected pre-treatment and post-treatment survey data from comparison communities to serve as a control group.
Representatives Tony Gonzales, Robin Kelly Introduce Bill to Form National Digital Reserve Corps
Representatives Tony Gonzales (R-TX-23) and Robin Kelly (D-IL-02) introduced legislation (H.R.
As Infrastructure Money Lands, the Job Dividends Begin
There's a wave of jobs that will result from $1.2 trillion in direct government spending from the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.