Last night Congress passed a COVID-19 relief package and other spending measures in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, and included are a number of labor-related provisions. AAF’s Director of Labor Market Policy Isabel Soto outlines the most notable provisions and examines how they will impact the labor market in both the short and longer term.

Her central points:

• The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 – which includes the latest coronavirus relief plan – extends several pre-existing provisions from previous coronavirus-related legislation that support unemployed individuals and those still attached to the labor force;
• Provisions that support those connected to the workforce include extending paid sick leave provisions from prior legislation, additional funding for employment training, and additional funding for the Child Care & Development Block Grant program; and
• Provisions that support the unemployed include $300 a week in supplemental unemployment compensation and the continuation of the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program.

Read the analysis.