|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Gov. Kay Ivey announced on Friday that effective Feb. 1, 2025, the Alabama Department of Labor will be officially renamed the Department of Workforce. Following the initial transition period, Secretary of Labor Marty Redden will retire, paving the way for Greg Reed to become the state’s first Secretary of Workforce.
“Increasing Alabama’s labor force participation rate is the current focus of our workforce development efforts,” Governor Ivey stated. “We are attracting significant business investments and new jobs, and we are helping our existing companies grow, and it is imperative we prepare our workforce. I am grateful for the good work Marty has done to begin this new chapter of workforce development in Alabama. I am excited for Greg to now take the helm and get to work.”
The renaming is part of the Alabama Workforce Transformation Act, signed into law by Governor Ivey during the 2024 Regular Session, aimed at streamlining the state’s workforce development efforts. Following the act’s passage, Governor Ivey appointed Redden to lead the initial transition phase and Reed as Senior Advisor to Workforce Transformation at the start of this calendar year. As Secretary of Workforce, Reed will continue the full implementation, which is expected to be completed during the summer of 2025.
“I am immensely honored to be the first Secretary of Workforce for the state of Alabama, and I am incredibly thankful to Governor Ivey that she has entrusted me to carry out her vision to tackle this all-important task,” Reed said. “Today is the first step in our mandate to make Alabama’s economy all that she can be, and workforce will be at the forefront of that mission. It is my commitment that this new agency will do all that it can to ensure Alabama workers are the best trained and most highly skilled in America.”
Reed emphasized his focus on collaboration: “It will be my focus to champion Governor Ivey’s goals by collaborating with the business community, the education community, the manufacturing and industrial community, the Alabama Legislature, and our federal delegation to coordinate our efforts and achieve best outcomes for the people of Alabama. I could not be more excited about this new and important initiative.”
During his tenure in the Alabama Senate, Reed sponsored numerous pieces of legislation focusing on workforce transformation and economic development. Notably, he sponsored the Alabama Incentives Modernization Act in 2019, which updated Alabama’s incentives to recruit businesses to rural counties, take advantage of federal opportunity zones, and attract technology companies to Alabama. Additionally, in 2023, as part of The Game Plan, Sen. Reed was vital to renewing the Growing Alabama Act and the Alabama Jobs Act. In 2024, he served as the legislative leader in the Working for Alabama bill package and was the sponsor for the Alabama Growth Alliance Act, which will serve as the state’s preeminent advisory council for long-term economic and workforce development plans.
In addition to helping ensure Alabama achieves maximum rates of employment, the Alabama Department of Workforce will fulfill traditional department responsibilities, including workplace safety and child labor enforcement, unemployment and workers’ compensation, labor market information, as well as inspections.
