- Research & Reports >> Job Training and Workforce Development
Job Training and Workforce Development
Study Finds Sector-Based Job Training Boosts Employment and Earnings (Public/Private Ventures - July 2010)
A two-year study by Public/Private Ventures documents success in job training programs in which nonprofit organizations provide training that is closely aligned with the needs of local employers. The report, Tuning in to Local Markets: Findings from the Sectoral Employment Impact Study, highlights findings from organizations in Wisconsin, Boston and New York City, who have seen a rise in employment, earnings and access to benefits for program participants.
How to Make the Workforce Investment Act Work for Women
(Center for American Progress - July 1, 2010)
The U.S. workforce development system is not meeting the needs of one half of our workforce—women. The Workforce Investment Act is a critical tool for employment and training for American workers. But WIA emphasizes quick job placement over building skills or attaining education, and the system is not set up to recognize and prevent unequal results of women or other participants, according to this report from Liz Weiss at the Center for American Progress.
Shifting Gears: State Innovation to Advance Workers and the Economy in the Midwest
(CLASP - July 2010)
Through Shifting Gears, The Joyce Foundation is supporting the work of five Midwest states that are developing and scaling up innovative programs in adult education, workforce development, and postsecondary education to increase the number of low-skilled workers with a postsecondary credential. In this report, read about how Shifting Gears states (Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin) are supporting innovative educational models and addressing barriers to completion for lower-skilled adults. The report also includes program details and outcomes from local Shifting Gears pilot sites in Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin.
Aiming Higher to Address Barriers Faced by Low-Income Women
(Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity - May 12, 2010)
With both the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program and the Workforce Investment Act due for reauthorization, this commentary argues that lawmakers have a unique opportunity to develop policies that provide low-income women with long-term economic security. Shelley A. Davis, vice president of programs and advocacy at Chicago Foundation for Women, and Surina Khan, vice president of programs at the Women’s Foundation of California, discuss why national job creation and workforce development efforts should focus on skill-building and education rather than simply moving low-income women into any available job.
Preparing Low-Skilled Workers for the Jobs of Tomorrow
Many state economic development leaders are focusing resources on strategies to spur growth in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Most efforts focus solely on generating highly skilled scientists and engineers. Effective initiatives must ensure that existing workers have the education and skills to fill middle-skill, technical and support STEM positions. This brief, from the Working Poor Families Project, identifies how state policies can prepare today's lower-skilled workers for these middle-skill positions.
Creating Postsecondary Pathways to Good Jobs for Young High School Dropouts
This paper, from the Center for American Progress, looks at strategies for connecting high school dropouts between the ages of 16 and 24 to pathways to postsecondary credentials that have value in the labor market. It will highlight examples of innovations in policy, program delivery, pedagogy in adult education, youth development and dropout recovery, and postsecondary education. The Center does this not only to advocate for expanded adoption of these best practices, but to seed thinking about ways these policies and practices, if better integrated and funded, can bring about more robust and successful dropout recovery and postsecondary education to address this challenge
In a departure from traditional strategies, some workforce organizations have begun to implement services and activities that focus on the needs of specific industry sectors. By identifying local sectors that lack workers—which might range from health care to manufacturing to construction—these organizations can help low-income workers acquire the specific skills they need to fill available positions. This report, from Public/Private Ventures, presents key findings and explores some of the challenges sectoral programs encountered.
Workforce Development and the Disadvantaged: New Directions for 2009 and Beyond
This brief, from the Low-Income Working Families Project, reviews the arguments for a workforce development system, examining the strengths and weaknesses of the Workforce Investment Act, which expired in 2003. Proposals include expanded funding and grants that states could use to target industries and sectors with unmet demands for skilled workers.