Local Workforce Initiatives

Reviews federally funded training programmes, notably its service providers and the way they operate. Considers issues of performance management under the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) of 1998. Compares public to private training programmes in the US and to the public training in other industrialized nations.

Tested, practical ideas to meet current and future skilling needs of both workers and employers The labor market in the United States faces seemingly contradictory challenges: Many employers have trouble finding qualified applicants for current and future jobs, while millions of Americans are out of work or are underemployed—their paths to living-wage jobs blocked by systemic barriers or lack of adequate skills. Growing Fairly offers workforce development reforms that meet the needs of both workers and employers. Based on the experiences of hundreds of leaders and workers, the authors set out ten principles for designing a more effective and equitable system that helps workers obtain the skills necessary for economic mobility. The principles outlined in the book argue for a more comprehensive view of the skilling needs of current and prospective workers. They spell out the attributes of effective programs and make the case for skill-based hiring, widely distributed performance data, and collaboration. The book emphasizes the importance of local action to overcome the structural barriers that challenge even the most determined would-be learners. Growing Fairly shows cross sector leaders how to work across organizational boundaries to change the trajectory of individuals struggling to make a living wage. This is not a book of untested theories. Instead, it is written by practitioners for practitioners. Much of it is told through the voices of those who run programs and people who have taken advantage of them. While the issues the book addresses are profound, its take on the subject is optimistic. Between them, the authors have spent decades searching out and supporting effective practices. Even more critically, they have learned how to knit competing agencies and organizations into cohesive systems with coordinated missions. Their practical ideas will benefit a wide range of readers, from practitioners in the field to students and scholars of the American labor system.

Skilled technical occupationsâ€"defined as occupations that require a high level of knowledge in a technical domain but do not require a bachelor's degree for entryâ€"are a key component of the U.S. economy. In response to globalization and advances in science and technology, American firms are demanding workers with greater proficiency in literacy and numeracy, as well as strong interpersonal, technical, and problem-solving skills. However, employer surveys and industry and government reports have raised concerns that the nation may not have an adequate supply of skilled technical workers to achieve its competitiveness and economic growth objectives. In response to the broader need for policy information and advice, Building America's Skilled Technical Workforce examines the coverage, effectiveness, flexibility, and coordination of the policies and various programs that prepare Americans for skilled technical jobs. This report provides action-oriented recommendations for improving the American system of technical education, training, and certification.

With the United States' choice for future employment being "high skills or low wages," the challenge to business and industry is to build, in partnership with public agencies, a cohesive management system that would invest in three critical areas of the work force: building a strong foundation of basic skills to help noncollege-bound youth enter the work force; providing continuing education and training for workers; and building a better "second chance" training and education system for working-age youth and adults who face special barriers to employment. To meet this challenge, the National Alliance of Business (NAB) proposes that business and government in each state and local community develop a "work force investment system" that links existing training and education institutions in an effective partnership to build a highly skilled, high performance labor force. If such a system is to be real and permanent, it should be built on guiding principles such as ease of access, broad inclusiveness, public-private partnership, market base, and concerted action at the national, state, and local levels. A proposed work force investment system model for the future couples delivery system reform with a broader role in the labor market for that system. Such a system would be characterized by a common point or points of intake, individualized assessment of clients to determine their service needs, a form of case management to see participants through the system, and a common system of placement that employers could readily access. Present federal and federal-state programs could be integrated into such a program, and local businesses would take the initiative to structure local solutions to problems confronting the mainstream work force. This model is appropriate and could be attainable for the U.S. labor market. (This report describes several state work force investment systems and local programs as well as the Training and Enterprise Councils system in Great Britain.) (KC)