Biden outlines plan for working families in State of the Union and campaign speeches

The recent State of the Union speech by President Joe Biden outlined many of his economic priorities, and many of those policies will have a direct impact on workers and employers. Biden followed the speech with a campaign-style swing through several states and continued to talk about how his policies are designed to improve workers’ lives.

At the same time, it’s clear that many workers are very concerned about inflation and the economy. Promoting the economy may be difficult sell for Biden; if voters experience hardships that convince them that the economy is on the wrong track, all the statistics in the world are not likely to change their opinion.

Jobs, jobs, jobs

During the last several presidencies, one metric above all has been seen as a sign of a successful economic approach: job creation. And Biden has a strong record, which he touted at the Washington speech.

“I inherited an economy that was on the brink. Now our economy is the envy of the world,” Biden said in the State of the Union speech. “15 million new jobs in just three years – that’s a record!”

Fact checkers were quick to point out that although the numbers are correct, it is in the context of the massive job losses that occurred when the COVID pandemic struck in 2020. Although job numbers have been very good, there is data that suggests some Americans are having a hard time finding work, especially at a living wage.

Biden has reinforced that message by reminding voters at different stops in his trip that his administration has seen very high employment numbers—including among communities in swing states that will influence the next election.

“Everything we’re doing is connecting people with opportunity, not disconnecting people from opportunity.  And we’re seeing progress,” Biden said in Milwaukee on March 13. In talking about job growth he said, “The share of Black and Latino Americans employed in Milwaukee in 2022 was the highest in more than a decade.”

Expanding health insurance and lowering drug costs

Biden has talked a lot about the Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, which was enacted while he served as vice president to President Obama. Biden noted that tax credits to help working families afford plans under the ACA will expire next year, and he called for making those credits permanent.

Biden has also touted his efforts to bring down drug prices. In several speeches he has noted that his policies have brought down the price of insulin from $400 per month on average to 35$ per month. Biden’s policies on negotiating lower drug prices are in their early stages, but they are also starting to take effect for a number of drugs in the Medicare program.

In the State of the Union speech, Biden called for expanding those efforts: “Now it’s time to go further and give Medicare the power to negotiate lower prices for 500 drugs over the next decade,” he said. “That will not only save lives it will save taxpayers another $200 Billion!”

Related: Biden’s Executive Order directs agencies to ramp up research on women’s health

Other benefits for working families

The recent speeches for Biden also called for helping Americans with costs and issues that are generally in the area of employee benefits—such as time off and childcare support.

Such benefits are in high demand by workers, but supply lags behind. In a recent study by PsychologyJobs.com, a survey found that less than 1% of workers in the psychology field had parental leave as an employer-sponsored benefit. That study also found data suggesting that 96% of companies in that field do not offer sick leave.

At the Reno event, Biden was asked about the Child Tax Credit, another expansion of family support that happened during the COVID years (the expanded credit has since expired.) Biden says that more support for families is good for all Americans. “We’re going to bring back the Child Tax Credit … It grows the economy,” he said. “When women are able to go to work knowing they have a safely — a safe place for their children, it grows the economy — in terms of education as well, by the way.”