U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.), ranking member of the Subcommittee on Communications, Media, and Broadband, today praised the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation for passing his Telecommunications Skilled Workforce Act, legislation to address the shortage of trained workers necessary to fill next-generation jobs in the telecommunications industry in communities throughout the country.
Thune’s remarks (as prepared for delivery) below:
“Thank you Chair Cantwell and Ranking Member Wicker for holding today’s executive session and for taking up the Telecommunications Skilled Workforce Act, bipartisan legislation I sponsored with the Ranking Member and Senators Tester, Moran, and Peters.
“In order to reap the benefits of 5G, we must have a skilled workforce in place to deploy the infrastructure necessary to support the technology.
“Some estimates suggest we will need an additional 20,000 tower climbers alone for the installation of wireless infrastructure.
“This legislation will help increase the number of workers enrolled in 5G training programs and identify ways to grow the telecommunications workforce.
“I look forward to advancing this legislation through the full Senate.”
