Jessica Holmes
Illustration by Cassie Rowe
Duties of a Commissioner of Labor include promoting health, safety and general welfare of a state’s workers. In addition, a Commissioner leads the Department of Labor and works to regulate consistently fair mandates, while fostering a healthy and productive workforce.
To whom is your first phone call on your first day of the job?
My first phone call on the first day of the job will be to reverse the current Commissioner’s decision to not provide Paid Parental Leave to Labor Department employees per Governor Cooper's Executive Order No. 95. Eligible state employees were able to receive this leave as of September 1, 2019, after giving birth, or to bond with and care for a child in the event of an adoption or fostering. Research proves that paid parental leave affords better health outcomes for children and has the added benefit of helping more women stay in the workforce. The Labor Department should be setting the standard for implementing and promoting family friendly policies for workers and I will lead the department accordingly.
How can we protect worker safety in a pandemic environment?
I will work collaboratively with the Governor’s office, the Department of Health and Human Services, employers and employees to ensure worker safety using data-driven decisions based in science, that prioritize the health and safety of all of North Carolina’s workers, notwithstanding politics or partisanship.
The key to ensuring the safety of workers is prevention, which includes being proactive about implementing best practices like ensuring workers have access to personal protective equipment and are able to socially distance. A critical component of my efforts to ensure worker safety also includes enhanced training initiatives and better utilizing inspectors.
What motivated you to become a first generation college graduate?
I was raised by my grandmother and she was my very first motivator. She is still the strongest and most prayerful woman I know. She ingrained in me a spirit of resilience and a passion for learning in spite of her never getting beyond a middle school education. Moreover, I credit public school educators for believing in me and guiding me through the college admissions process, which set the stage for me to be a first generation college student and attorney.
Why are community colleges important?
Socioeconomic mobility is a challenge within many communities. Statistics show that, generally, if someone is born poor, they will stay poor. I pledge to support policies geared toward encouraging upward mobility, hence why supporting community colleges is an important part of my platform.
We need multi-faceted solutions including a high quality education in every public school, more career technical training in high schools, a renewed focus on trades and skills, and empowering community colleges to train and retrain our workforce.
If elected, you will make history representing North Carolina as the first woman of color elected Labor Commissioner. What would you say to young women watching you?
At every opportunity, I share with young women that we are worthy - worthy of being heard, worthy of occupying spaces traditionally occupied by others we may not always relate to or those who do not share our experiences or concerns. We are not constrained by statistics and zip codes that don’t account for our magic. That said, defying odds and making history isn’t easy. It requires determination and being passionate about whatever it is you are pursuing. However, you were born fully equipped to be exceptional.