Former Obama official has expertise in family and medical leave, pay equity, workplace labor standard.
Pronita Gupta, an Indian American expert on labor issues, has been appointed as Special Assistant to President Joe Biden for Labor and Workers on the Domestic Policy Council.
A former Obama administration official, Gupta was working as director of job quality for the last four years at the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) in Washington, DC, a national, nonpartisan, anti-poverty nonprofit advancing policy solutions for low-income people.
“Pronita brings a deep commitment and dedication to advocating for policies that improve job quality for workers, strengthen worker protections, and increase economic security for working families with low incomes,” CLASP executive director Olivia Golden said in a statement.
“She is an extraordinary leader who places people with low incomes and people of color at the core of her work and powerfully combines passion and vision with deep, detailed, practical knowledge.”
“I cannot think of anyone who could better serve President Biden and the nation in advancing this crucial agenda.”
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“In her nearly four years as CLASP’s Director of the Job Quality team, Pronita was a leader nationally and in the states, advancing policies that improved the jobs of workers with low wages, playing an integral role in the Work Family Strategy Council and partnering with colleagues around the country,” Golden stated.
“At CLASP, she assembled a tremendously effective team that played a crucial role in building state and national momentum for paid family and medical leave and paid sick days, taking on everything from the details of financing and implementing effective programs to the broad vision, through testimony, speeches, detailed technical assistance, and powerful research reports and commentaries.”
“CLASP is incredibly proud that Pronita has been tapped for this critical role in the administration,” Golden stated.
“With her deep expertise, integrity, analytical skills and passion for this work, Pronita will make an extraordinary contribution to the Biden-Harris administration’s plan to build an economy that addresses racial inequities, creates millions of job, and invests in jobs for the future.”
Prior to joining CLASP, Gupta served as the deputy director of the women’s bureau in the US Department of Labor under President Obama. In that role, she worked to advance and improve standards, practices, and opportunities for women in the labor force.
She also previously served as senior director of programs for the Women Donors Network (WDN) as well as research director for Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy.
Gupta has extensive experience in community and labor organizing. She served as research director for SCOPE/AGENDA in Los Angeles, where she helped develop their health care jobs campaign, and as research director for the Living Wage Campaign at the LA Alliance for a New Economy (LAANE).
Additionally, Gupta served as executive director of Institute for Southern Studies and legislative director for the US Student Association.
She holds an MPA from Columbia University and a BA in Government from Clark University.