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Workforce Association Backs Bill to Open DUA Wage Data for Program Evaluation
Summary
The Massachusetts Workforce Association urged the committee to support legislation that would permit secure sharing of unemployment wage records with workforce agencies so local programs can measure employment outcomes and equity more effectively.
The Massachusetts Workforce Association told the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development that a better data system is needed to measure employment outcomes of participants in publicly funded workforce programs and to evaluate equity across regions.
"The Massachusetts workforce association believes strongly that Massachusetts workforce system should be supported by a data system that makes use of the latest and best technology," said Cole Anglia, executive director of the Massachusetts Workforce Association. He asked the committee to support House 2171 and Senate 1340 to provide timely access to Department of Unemployment Assistance wage data for workforce evaluation and planning.
Anglia said the bills would build on existing reporting mechanisms between the Department of Unemployment Assistance and the Department of Career Services, avoid new employer reporting burdens, and enable local workforce boards and career centers to measure whether programs lead to equitable employment and wage outcomes. He added that the legislation would create a task force to resolve privacy and technical questions before wider data sharing.
The association framed the change as standard practice in several other states and said improved data access would let the workforce system better match job seekers and measure program performance without relying only on surveys or spotty reporting.
Ending: The witness asked the committee to advance the bill and authorize a task force to design secure, privacy‑protected data sharing between unemployment records and workforce agencies so outcomes can be measured more accurately.
