Workforce association backs bill to share unemployment wage data with local workforce system

The Massachusetts Workforce Association urged the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development to support H.2171/S.1340, legislation to grant workforce organizations timely access to Department of Unemployment Assistance (DUA) wage records for evaluation of employment outcomes.

"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," Cole Anglia, executive director of the association, testified. He said access to DUA wage data would let career centers and workforce boards measure participant employment outcomes more reliably than surveys and better assess equity across programs and regions.

Anglia said the bill would use existing reporting mechanisms between DUA and the Department of Career Services and would not place additional reporting burdens on employers. The legislation also proposes a task force to work through privacy, technical and governance issues before full implementation.

Supporters argued the measure is consistent with practices in other states — California, New York, Kentucky and Oregon were cited — and would support continuous improvement of workforce programs without exposing individual employer data. The committee did not take a formal vote; proponents asked for further study and a favorable report to develop technical safeguards and the task force approach.