Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti led a coalition of 23 other state attorneys general in submitting a public comment letter in opposition to a new proposed rule by the Department of Labor.
The Department of Labor’s proposed rule, titled National Apprenticeship System Enhancements, seeks to to promote “greater equity” in the National Apprenticeship System by requiring sponsors and other stakeholders to develop “an intentional strategy to recruit from and retain” people from “underserved communities” in order to qualify for taxpayer money.
The proposed rule would also impose new race-based oversight and data collection requirements on the sponsors, employers, and stakeholders in order to prove compliance with the regulations.
"We should not let race-obsessed ideology interfere with an important and successful apprenticeship program," said AG Skrmetti.
"No American should be deprived of an opportunity because of their race."
➡️https://t.co/bwwBgawrDi pic.twitter.com/eFAM3u51c9
— TN Attorney General (@AGTennessee) March 19, 2024
The National Apprenticeship System is currently authorized to provide taxpayer money to state sponsors, employers, and other entities in order for Americans to take advantage of apprenticeship opportunities around the nation.
The Department of Labor is authorized by Congress to “formulate and promote the furtherance of labor standards necessary to safeguard the welfare of apprentices.”
Skrmetti and the coalition of state attorneys general argue the department’s proposed rule would “effectively require program sponsors, State Apprenticeship Agencies (SAA), and participating employers to treat people differently based on the color of their skin.”
“The Proposed Rule deviates from the statutory purpose of safeguarding the welfare of apprentices and builds on existing regulations to further entrench an apprenticeship regime dedicated to picking winners and losers based on the color of apprentices’ skin,” the coalition wrote in the public comment letter.
“We endorse the value of promoting meaningful diversity of experience and viewpoint in the workplace. Further, we support finding meaningful interventions to promote the success of disadvantaged apprentices regardless of the color of their skin. But as we have previously admonished private employers and the Department of Commerce, neither public nor private employers can lawfully pursue that goal by engaging in racial discrimination, regardless of whether their efforts go under the labels of ‘equity,’ ‘DEIA,’ or other similar euphemisms,” the coalition added.
The state attorneys general cited four specific ways the proposed rule would violate the law if enacted.
“The Department’s desire to achieve broader diversity ends cannot be effectuated through race-based means. We hope this comment will redirect the Department toward lawful diversity efforts—and away from measures, like the Proposed Rule, that exceed congressional authority,” the coalition wrote.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Kaitlin on X / Twitter.
Background Photo “Department of Labor Building” by AgnosticPreachersKid. CC BY-SA 3.0.
