The Committee on Education and the Workforce is a committee of the United States House of Representatives. This standing committee has jurisdiction over education and labor issues.

History of the Committee

Attempts were made to create a congressional committee on education and labor since the early congresses but issues over congresses constitutional ability to oversee such issues delayed the committees formation. Finally, on March 21, 1867 the Committee on Education and Labor was founded following the end of the Civil War and during the rapid industrialization of America. On December 19, 1883 the committee was divided into two, one overseeing Education and the other Labor. The committees again merged on January 2, 1947 after the passage of the Legislative Reorganization Act, becoming the Committee on Education and Labor. On January 4, 1995 , the Committee was renamed once again the Committee on Economic and Educational Opportunities and finally renamed the Committee on Education and the Workforce on January 7, 1997 .

Organization

The committee is composed of 49 member of the House of Representatives, 27 from the Republican Party and 22 from the Democratic Party. Members are chosen by their party's caucus and the committee is led by a chairman. The current Chairman is Representative Howard P. "Buck" McKeon (R-CA). The committee also has five subcommittees. '

Jurisdiction

The Education and workforce committee oversees all federal education and labor programs and initiatives including the controversial program No Child Left Behind Act . The programs also include

Education

• Elementary and secondary education initiatives, including the No Child Left Behind Act, school choice for low-income families, special education (the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ), teacher quality & teacher training, scientifically-based reading instruction, and vocational and technical education
• Higher education programs (the Higher Education Act), to support college access for low and middle-income students and help families pay for college
• Early childhood & preschool education programs including Head Start
• School lunch and child nutrition programs
• Financial oversight of the United States Department of Education
• Programs and services for the care and treatment of at-risk youth, child abuse prevention, and child adoption
• Educational research and improvement
• Adult education
• Anti-poverty programs, including the Community Services Block Grant Act and the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program

Labor

• Pension and retirement security for workers
• Access to quality health care for working families and other employee benefits
• Job training, adult education, and workforce development initiatives, including those under the Workforce Investment Act ,to help local communities train and retrain workers;
• Continuing the welfare reforms of 1996
• Protecting the democratic rights of individual union members
• Worker health and safety, including occupational safety and health
• Equal employment opportunity and civil rights in employment
• Wages and hours of labor, including the Fair Labor Standards Act
• Workers compensation , and family and medical leave
• All matters dealing with relationships between employers and employees

Current Members

Republicans

Democrats

Subcommittees

• Subcommittee on 21st Century Competitiveness - Buck McKeon (R-CA) Chairman
• Subcommittee on Education Reform - Michael N. Castle (R-DE) Chairman
• Subcommittee on Employer-Employee Relations - Sam Johnson (R-TX) Chairman
• Subcommittee on Workforce Protections - Charlie Norwood (R-GA) Chairman
• Subcommittee on Select Education - Patrick Tiberi (R-OH) Chairman

External links

• Official Homepage

Committees of the United States Congress