Title 15 › Chapter CHAPTER 58— - FULL EMPLOYMENT AND BALANCED GROWTH › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER I— - STRUCTURAL ECONOMIC POLICIES AND PROGRAMS INCLUDING TREATMENT OF RESOURCE RESTRAINTS › § 3116
The President, working with the Secretary of Labor, must make policies and suggest programs to help people 16 and older who are able, willing, and looking for work but still unemployed. The Secretary must use the power of Title I of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act and other laws to provide counseling, training, and supports; to refer job seekers to public and private jobs (including jobs created under sections 3112, 3114, and 3115 of this title) through public employment offices and the U.S. Employment Service; and to encourage flex-time and part-time work for those who cannot do a full standard workweek. If private jobs and current programs do not create enough work, the President may set up public and private nonprofit "reservoir" jobs, approved by the Secretary, by expanding Title I activities or creating new programs. Any new program authorized after October 27, 1978, cannot start earlier than two years after that date and needs a written finding sent to Congress that other means are not producing enough jobs. New programs must not pull workers from private jobs, must provide useful work, focus on lower-skill/pay jobs to maximize the number of positions, target high-unemployment areas and the structurally unemployed, and be phased in with Employment Act goals. The Secretary must make rules to assess job seekers’ abilities, apply nondiscrimination rules, set priority rules for access (using factors like household income, at least five weeks of unemployment, and number of dependents), deny access to those who refuse suitable work without good cause, and provide appeal procedures.
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Commerce and Trade — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
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15 U.S.C. § 3116
Title 15 — Commerce and Trade
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73