The business of Maryland business is jobs and putting people to work in our state. Portia Wu is the Maryland Department of Labor Secretary and joins Nestor to talk economy, the local workforce and the threat of federal cuts on this side of the DMV, where more citizens serve Washington, D.C. than anywhere else.
Portia Wu, Maryland Department of Labor Secretary, discussed the department’s multifaceted roles, including unemployment insurance, worker safety, wage standards, and workforce development. She highlighted the impact of federal government actions on Maryland’s economy, noting that 3,000 former federal workers have applied for unemployment. Wu emphasized the importance of supporting federal workers and the state’s low unemployment rate. She also mentioned the department’s efforts in workforce development, particularly in skilled trades, and its response to emergencies like the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse. The conversation also touched on the department’s new heat standard and free consultation services for small businesses.
Action Items
- [ ] Provide information on how to file for unemployment benefits and access American Job Centers
- [ ] Continue holding weekly workshops to support former federal workers who have lost their jobs
- [ ] Investigate workplace safety incidents, such as the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse, and provide emergency assistance to affected workers
- [ ] Promote the department’s new heat safety standards and offer free consultation services to small businesses
Outline
Introduction and Context Setting
- Nestor Aparicio introduces the show, mentioning various sponsors and activities, including lottery tickets, crab cake tours, and a trip to Ocean City.
- Nestor shares personal anecdotes about his experiences in Ocean City, including a humorous story about deciding not to go out due to rain.
- Nestor recalls meeting Portia Wu, the Maryland Department of Labor Secretary, at a previous event and expresses his desire to have her on the show to explain her role.
- Nestor humorously describes the Maryland Department of Labor as a “hall closet” of state agencies, hinting at its diverse responsibilities.
Overview of the Maryland Department of Labor
- Portia Wu explains the Maryland Department of Labor’s role, emphasizing its traditional labor functions like unemployment insurance, worker safety, and wage standards.
- She highlights the department’s additional responsibilities, such as building a new paid family and medical leave system, workforce development, and financial regulation.
- Portia mentions the department’s involvement in consumer protection, including student loan ombudsman, elder fraud, and occupational and professional licensing.
- She humorously adds that the department also regulates mixed martial arts and horse racing, ensuring safety in these industries.
Key Responsibilities and Services
- Nestor asks Portia about the most important aspects of her role and the services the department provides to Marylanders.
- Portia identifies unemployment insurance as a critical service, especially during economic upheaval, and mentions the department’s efforts to help people connect to new job opportunities.
- She discusses the department’s role in supporting federal workers and contractors, noting the significant impact of federal government actions on Maryland’s economy.
- Portia explains the process of filing for unemployment insurance, including the various ways individuals can reach out for assistance, such as through the department’s website, phone, or in-person at American job centers.
Impact of Federal Government Actions on Maryland
- Nestor and Portia discuss the impact of recent federal government actions on Maryland, particularly the effects on federal employees and contractors.
- Portia mentions the department’s weekly workshops for federal workers, which saw a high turnout at the beginning of the federal government changes.
- She notes that about 3000 former federal workers in Maryland have applied for unemployment, and she clarifies the process for filing claims based on where individuals work.
- Nestor and Portia discuss the broader economic impact of federal government actions on Maryland, including the ripple effects on local businesses and communities.
Labor Participation and Workforce Needs
- Portia highlights Maryland’s high labor participation rate and the state’s skilled workforce, emphasizing the importance of recognizing the contributions of hardworking men and women.
- She discusses the ongoing needs in various sectors, such as education, healthcare, and skilled trades, and the department’s efforts to connect people to these opportunities.
- Portia mentions the department’s focus on growing apprenticeships in the skilled building trades and connecting young people to these careers.
- Nestor and Portia discuss the challenges and opportunities in different industries, including the ongoing nurse shortage and the need for mental health and substance abuse counseling.
Emergency Assistance and Workplace Safety
- Portia shares examples of the department’s emergency response efforts, such as the assistance provided after the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse.
- She explains the challenges faced by independent contractors in qualifying for unemployment insurance and the department’s efforts to support them.
- Portia discusses the department’s role in ensuring workplace safety, including the implementation of new heat standards to protect workers from extreme temperatures.
- She highlights the department’s free consultation services for small businesses to help them develop safety plans and comply with regulations.
Conclusion and Future Plans
- Nestor thanks Portia for her insights and expresses his appreciation for the department’s work.
- Portia reiterates the department’s commitment to supporting Marylanders and ensuring workplace safety and fair treatment for all workers.
- Nestor mentions upcoming guests and events on his show, including discussions on various local and national issues.
- The conversation ends with Nestor and Portia sharing light-hearted moments about their favorite foods and experiences in Ocean City.
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
Maryland Department of Labor, unemployment insurance, worker safety, paid family leave, workforce development, financial regulation, job centers, federal workers, job search, economic upheaval, job growth, nurse shortage, skilled trades, heat standard, emergency assistance.
SPEAKERS
Portia Wu, Nestor Aparicio, Speaker 1
Nestor Aparicio 00:00
Welcome home. We are W, N, S, T, am 1570 tasks, Baltimore. We are Baltimore positive somewhere around here. I have my lottery tickets. I swear I’ll hold them up. I had John Martin and Seth Elkin on. We’ll be giving away lucky sevens doublers as well as the Whammy and pressure luck. Next week, five crab cake tours in a row, beginning on Thursday at fade leaves on Friday will be crab cakes and pizza will be pizza will be pizza Johns and Essex. All are brought to you by friends at GBMC, as well as liberty, pure solutions and Curia, wellness, putting us out on the road. My 27 favorite things to eat this month. I’m down to, like day 2021, I’m in Ocean City, still waiting for that Fisher’s popcorn down here, but we’re gonna be getting it out and around the community. Last year I came to Mako. We’re down here in Ocean City right now. We had the mayor on, we had a lot of different people on, but this is really about partying. And I’ll be honest with you, last night, I pulled my car into the parking lot of secrets, and rain was hitting the windshield, and I was gonna walk, and I sat there about 10 minutes, and I thought, Nah, I’m going to bed. So I am fresh. I did not drink last night. I did not party last night, but last year I did, and I met Portia Wu and she said, I am the Maryland Department of Labor Secretary. And we had a laugh, and I said, Someday you got to come on and explain to me what the Maryland Department of Labor is. And you had a sense of humor. You had people around you. We had a good time. And a year later, you came by yesterday, and you’re like, hey, and I’m like, Hey, I gotta have you on. And then I realize you like a comms department, and they’re asking me questions. I don’t know what I’m gonna ask you. I barely know what the Department of Labor is. How are you I’m doing? Well, why? Yes, cuz you were a fun person to talk to at the pool, but there’s a pool party for the mayor. I met you at the tourism event last year. Well, there’s a lot of parties down here. Mako brings a unique set of people together, and you run a really big wing of our state government that involves, I guess, when people get their paychecks, they see taxes, they see, you know, all these different things. But what is the Department
Portia Wu 01:58
of Labor? So Department of Labor in Maryland, actually, I think of it as sort of the hall closet of state agencies. But as I try to remind everyone, and Harry Potter has told us, great things come out of hall closets. So we’re sort of the agency that does a lot of traditional labor things and also other things that aren’t so traditional. So unemployment insurance, worker safety and health, like most Maryland Occupational Safety and Health, protecting your wage standards, so minimum wage, overtime, things like that. We’re also building a new paid family and medical leave system and workforce development. So if you’re out of a job, looking for a new job, want to figure out how to train for something, do some job search. You can go to one of the 33 American job centers we have around the state, and they’ll help you. But we have a bunch of other things that also fall in our bucket. So we do financial regulation, so regulating state banks and credit unions and other kinds of consumer protection, like student loan ombudsman, elder fraud and abuse, things like that, as well as occupational and professional licensing, couple other random things like mixed martial arts and horse racing thrown in there as well elevator safety. You ever get an elevator, you see that certificate,
Nestor Aparicio 03:12
I knew this is going to be good horse racing and mixed martial so from the Labor standpoint, it’s about the humans and their their safety on the job, correct? Yeah,
Portia Wu 03:28
human and well, in the horse situation, Cuban and horse safety, sure. But yes, our angle is the safety. Sadly, we don’t deal with the money part of horse racing, so that we’d have to be a very big department if we did that. But so horse racing safety, elevator safety, boiler safety, amusement park ride safety. So for folks going to state fair saw that actually weeks ago. It’s crazy, yeah, so, you know, we need to try to make sure Maryland’s are safe, where they live, work and play, all right,
Nestor Aparicio 03:57
so what’s the most important? What comes to your desk the most? And if I were to ask you the three things that are the most important things that you do every day that affects Marylanders, that the most common thing somebody would need the Maryland Department of
Portia Wu 04:10
Labor for? Well, it changes from time to time, but I will say, especially now, with everything going on with the federal government and all the kind of economic upheaval, unemployment insurance is one of the very first things so people who have lost their jobs or want a better one, so I’d say we try to provide those benefits if you’re eligible, but also help people connect to something else, depending on what that fit might be, and especially we, you know, Maryland has close to 270,000 federal workers, over 200,000 federal contractors who live in our state.
Nestor Aparicio 04:40
So if you are unemployed, or find yourself unemployed, you will reach to you or your department. That’s right, in some way, that’s, I mean, it’s not I, I’ve been unemployed for 35 years. You know, I’m independent, but you know, I have employed people and unemployed people. And you know, I remember when I’ve unemployed people, one of the first things they. Do is reach the state. That’s what you know, they call the state. What does that entail? I’ve never, you know, I I’m unemployed. What do I do? Where do I reach? Website, online that literally right,
Portia Wu 05:11
right, right. Now, you can file on labor.maryland.gov, there’s information about how to do that. If you’re
Nestor Aparicio 05:16
work for big company, you have an HR upon exit to at least give you a folder in some way, right? Again, I’ve never really been in that position, so I’m just ignorant about it, you know,
Portia Wu 05:26
yeah, exactly. You can do that. You can call us. Our phone number is there on the website. You can go in person to one of our 33 American job centers around the state, and they can help you understand how to file. They can also help you, at the same time, look for a new job, because that’s probably what’s on your mind as well. I’m on LinkedIn,
Nestor Aparicio 05:41
so at least I see everybody looking for jobs, and you’re the monster, and I wouldn’t even know how to look for a job. Yeah, yeah. Well, you know, and I’m incapable of doing anything with this Porsche, you know,
Portia Wu 05:51
you can show up. We’ll get you the nearest address. I don’t want to. I
Nestor Aparicio 05:54
want to see you once a year here and educate people and have a little bit of fun with you. Porsche. Who’s here, she is the she’s in charge of labor, not transportation, so I’ll make sure that. But in regard to labor for the state, we really for the country. We don’t have, like, an unemployment problem in this country right now, right? I mean, just in a general, like, percentage wise, employment is good in our state right now, right?
Portia Wu 06:20
I will say unemployment is the lowest, pretty much. It’s been in a very long time, and Maryland has really led that we’re one of the lowest 10, you know, 10 lowest unemployment rates in the country that said. We’re also a state where, because of the federal government exposure, we have a very high level of exposure. And that doesn’t just affect feds, right? It affects the people they buy sandwiches from at lunch. It affects, you know, all the services that people might be buying if they have to tighten their belts. That means that has a knock on effect for everyone in their communities and neighborhoods. So even though we’ve added jobs, we had strong job growth during the Moeller administration. Coming back well from pandemic, there are still some pockets of people who haven’t come back as strong, I will say employment among women, for example, okay, Maryland, historically has been one of the highest rates of working women in the country, and we took a really tough hit during pan Baga. It’s come back, but not all the way. So there’s still some pockets of folks that, for whatever reason, haven’t come back off the bench. So we want to find a way to encourage them come back. Because we have a lot of needs still, like we still need tons of teachers. We need people with medical Yeah, oh for sure, yeah. I always hear about nurse shortage. Nurse shortages all up and down the spectrum in health care. They’re desperate shortages. A lot of people left honestly after pandemic, and there are a lot of stressful work, health needs, mental health needs, substance abuse counseling needs. There’s so much need out there. We want to let people know what those opportunities are. And frankly, we’re growing and building right in the skilled building trades. So a lot of folks here, from electricians, carpenters, everything, there is a lot of work in the state, and they’re growing their apprenticeships. Want to connect young people to some of those great careers too
Nestor Aparicio 08:03
well. When the felon King was re elected about eight months ago, I knew we’d have a lot of problems in the country, but I didn’t realize how. And I guess I know this from driving past NSA and living in Baltimore my whole life and being a commuter in and out of DC, how the federal government works, and the spoke and wheel that not everybody lives in Reston or Alexandria, they live in Silver Spring or Bethesda on our side. How devastating has this first eight months been in regard to federal employees? Because I saw the stats the next day, Maryland has the most federal employees in the country. I don’t know how many of them were axed by the felon king, but I’m sure that your phone rang a lot in January, February and March with this issue, when the Nazi guy with the chainsaw came out and started hacking away at our government.
Portia Wu 08:55
Well, we did get a lot of questions, and we actually run a weekly workshop for federal workers every Wednesday. And at the beginning it was hundreds of people coming in every
Nestor Aparicio 09:04
Wednesday saying, was it about rights, or was it about like, what am I going to do? What am I going to do? What am I
Portia Wu 09:09
going to how do i retool a lot of folks who haven’t looked for a job in a long time. Federal Government resumes are really special animal, trying to figure out, what are the opportunities out there? And I have to say, we’ve seen, I think, about 3000 people apply for unemployment who are former Feds in the state, 3000 so it’s not as high, I think, as the number may go in the future, for anyone listening out there, I want to make sure you also know you apply where your duty station is. So if you live in Maryland and work in DC, you got to apply with DC government. That’s the way unemployment works. But anyone working in Maryland, we had about 3000 it’s where
Speaker 1 09:46
you work, that where you work. That’s not about being a resident, right? Exactly where you were employed? Yes, okay, exactly, exactly.
Nestor Aparicio 09:52
So almost all federal government people would be in DC, other than maybe NSA, a couple of these social security’s based America. But. But the if the agency’s based in you work in Woodlawn and Social Security, and you get fired, it’s you. But if you live in silver spring and work in the district, anywhere in the in a building in the district, right,
Portia Wu 10:11
right, then you file the district. We have about 160,000 federal jobs located in Maryland too. We’ve got a lot so, so 160,000
Nestor Aparicio 10:18
This is why I love this is great. So 160,000 3000 3000 of the 160 have found themselves, which is percent and a half to you know, give, give or take, right?
Portia Wu 10:28
I mean, it’s very high for federal workers. Some of those folks may not have filed yet. Some of them may have found jobs. Some may be saying, I need to take a break. Some had some severance problems. Yeah, exactly, exactly. So I think we’re going to see the effects, you know, playing out over the next several months. People
Nestor Aparicio 10:45
might come back into the job. Okay, good. Porsche. Wu’s here. She runs all things labor and I am laboring. Labor Day is soon. You have anything you want to say, You’re the labor lady. You say something about Labor Day and working hard, but we are. We’re paying the bills, right? I mean, just we are a working state, and the money comes in because we’re putting a lot of people to work. I guess that was my point on unemployment,
Portia Wu 11:08
right? Yeah, we have a very high late rate of labor participation. I know that’s a wonky way to say it, but it means Marylanders like to work. We have a lot of really skilled people in our state, too highly educated, or people with very strong technical certifications. So you know, on Labor Day, I know most people think of it as a day to, like, kick back, have your barbecue, like, get a break, as everyone’s going back to school. But we should also remember, like, there are a lot of hard working men and women out there, like, we want to recognize their contributions, make sure they can stay safe on the job, recognize their right to organize, and how important that is to protecting workers and has been over the centuries. So, um, you know, I’m excited
Nestor Aparicio 11:47
union labor secretary. I’m good with that, you know, as how America was built, right? Exactly. I’ve been a member of a guild. My dad was a union member, so I’m pro union as well. Anything else that I could add with you? Because I did have fun talking last year, I want to have you on. I feel like I’ve learned a lot here, but I it is a wonky role, right? I mean, it is something where you’re in the back doing things that people don’t know you’re doing, but things that are very, very important. They’re not out in front.
Portia Wu 12:11
Well, I would say sometimes we jump to the front like so, for example, when the Francis Scott Key bridge collapsed, right there was the dredging the channel and putting, you know, pulling the pieces out. But then there were all those workers who were out of work overnight, so we had to stand up some emergency assistance programs to them. Some of them didn’t qualify for unemployment insurance assistance. So we stood up some emergency How
Nestor Aparicio 12:32
can you not qualify? What would what would be the delineator from qualifying versus not?
Portia Wu 12:36
Independent contractors aren’t covered, and a lot of people who worked at the port were independent contractors. So that’s why you have to be a w2 employee, okay, to be covered by UI, yeah.
Nestor Aparicio 12:46
So this is where I don’t understand that part of because even as a business owner, I didn’t understand it when I had, you know how many employees you have, my account explains it to me or tries to I’m a little vapid, as you can tell when you know when it comes to it. So that part of if, if I’m on so that the people that died there, if they that, would be different if they were independent contractor, than being an employee, correct?
Portia Wu 13:08
Well, that that’s a separate Senate, yeah, it could be. I mean, for in terms of Occupational Safety and Health, you know, the protections generally protect people who are on site, right? So, you know, we still investigate, regardless of the situation.
Nestor Aparicio 13:24
That was a state job, not a federal job, right? Being on that bridge, right? So
Portia Wu 13:29
I have to say, I can’t speak to all the like, you know, there’s contractors and you know, other arrangements, but you know, we certainly did investigate that case, and we also helped make sure the cleanup and demolition was conducted safely, because that was very dangerous work as well. So we worked very closely with the contractors, because you’re, you know, sawing apart all that metal, doing all those things we need to make sure,
Nestor Aparicio 13:50
the morning the bridge went down was like, that was a big day for, I mean, for everybody in the state. It was, I mean, you know, I was in Florida, I came home, we talked, I’m a Dundalk guy. I mean, I could see that bridge every day of my life. So it was a mess. But I’m thinking, how did that come to the labor game? We
Portia Wu 14:06
mobilized almost 100 people across our department, and we had a site on burning highway for weeks where we would have people coming in person and help them file their claims if they needed help. Unemployment or the additional benefits we set up. We also set up benefits for small businesses to let them keep their businesses running and to support them and provide them grants and keep their people on payroll during those first couple months. So, you know, kind of jumping in an emergency to support workers and businesses. That’s part of our role. One other thing I will say, I know Summer is almost over, but I’m thinking about it. We did a new heat standard, and that’s a lot of what we’ve been doing this summer is emphasizing for workers, you need rest, breaks, shade. You also need to ease in, like, if you’re new to a job, shouldn’t be out there working in 90 degree heat all day, like on day one, right? You can’t do that. Body can get. Used to heat, but it takes time, so you got to figure out a plan and to ease in and what to do if, unfortunately, somebody gets sick. We’re seeing with hotter and hotter temperatures. A lot of people may not realize the risks to them. So hydrate, man. A huge part of our campaign this summer, I have to very successful, and we actually provide free consultation services to small businesses. If they say, I don’t know how to have a plan, I don’t know how to keep my workplace safe, absolutely free, willing to help them out. Thanks
Nestor Aparicio 15:28
for coming by. You were great. So I don’t feel so bad now, when I told your comms guy where we top at the Key Bridge, we wound up doing five minutes on the Key Bridge, and it winds up being a big thing, right? Yeah, it was a
Portia Wu 15:38
huge thing for us, for sure. All right, see,
Nestor Aparicio 15:41
I’m smarter than I sound. I’m off to a good start. We’re at Ocean City. We’re in Mako Porsha Wu was she runs labor here in the state of Maryland, and you just got your labor day labor report from Ocean City. You should come back next year. We’ll have some fun happy to do it. I appreciate you. Mary. Lottery sends us on the road down here to Ocean City, Maryland. I’m gonna get some fishers popcorn. I have a my piece of coconut death by coconut pie from the ugly pie that was day 20. They actually have it in Ocean City too. They have it in some little supermarket I saw. So you get the death by coconut when you’re down here. We’re gonna be back in Baltimore all next week, doing not just the crab cake tour, but our 27th anniversary. My 27 favorite things to eat. We are doing the countdown. There will be pastries, there will be pie, there will be cookies, there will be crab, Imperial, Mickey, hungry, yet,
Portia Wu 16:25
what’s your favorite? Fishers? Popcorn? Flavor, plain,
Nestor Aparicio 16:29
regular, gooey, hot, warm and a little box.
Portia Wu 16:33
Okay, that’s good. That’s good. I mean, I love that, I love that. I love that salty, sweet combo
Nestor Aparicio 16:40
base made for crabs. What’s wrong with you?
Portia Wu 16:45
With, you know, caramel Bay together
Nestor Aparicio 16:47
wings. I put all bales of wings.
Portia Wu 16:50
Okay, I can say, I can come on the show again, if you as long as you’re not anti old, you
Nestor Aparicio 16:55
can put salt on the popcorn and make it salted caramel. I’m in with that, but I don’t need all that paprika red thing going on. Oh, that’s my favorite. I’ll take you for crabs, and we’ll do that crab cake. We’ll do that the right way. All right, we’re back down in Ocean City. I’m eating. I stopped drinking, at least for today, but bad with names just in town the night of Fager. So things are getting a little crazy. I don’t have to get up to radio tomorrow. We’re gonna have Chris Van Hollen here a little later on. I should just promote this, because, like, we got so many Emily Keller’s gonna be here. She’s the opioid czar. Marks gonna be here from montgomery county. Go talk baseball. Brooke Lehrman is gonna be here. Chris Van Hollen is gonna be here. Sean Stinnett gonna be here and see Cohen’s gonna be here. So that’s what I have we’ve already done. Odette Ramos, it is day two. Mako, I’m caffeinated. Stay with us. We’re at the beach. We’re.
