Innovations in Training for the American Labor Force
Jo Kwong
Labor participation rates have been trending downward, but the broader numbers mask several other aspects that are notable in relation to work in America. Some people, for example, are employed in part-time work but would prefer to work more. Still others, especially men of prime working age, are not working at all.[1]
What is working to help more people, especially the unemployed and underemployed, to achieve greater employment success? The nation is increasingly embroiled in heated debates about one approach — requiring employers to pay more for entry-level work by raising the minimum wage — but there is also another way: Instead of paying more for low-skilled jobs, why not equip people to earn more? We could do this with a two-step approach to employment: embrace entry-level work as a temporary stepping-stone for workers to enter the workforce and then “upskill” entry-level workers to compete for higher wages in the labor market.
There is nothing extraordinary about this idea. For many people, it is the “normal” course of events. The challenge is to turn it into the default pathway for all prospective workers, including those with low educational and technical skills.
Every day, nonprofit organizations, community colleges, and other workforce development institutes are doing just this. On the entry-level front, nonprofits such as Cincinnati Works [2] or the Cara Program [3] are helping the chronically unemployed to become employable, find and keep jobs, and begin a path toward self-sufficiency.
Most of their clients face multiple barriers, including felony records, addictions, and homelessness, that make them difficult to employ. Cara addresses this through its “social enterprise,” Cleanslate,[4] which temporarily employs the tough cases, thanks to the generosity of donors who subsidize their employment. At these jobs, graduates can practice working in a safe environment and build a work record. Philanthropic generosity also provides professional clothing donations, mentors, and other supports that help develop the soft skills that employers seek: the willingness to show up for work on time, every time, prepared with the tools and attitude needed for the job.
Cincinnati Works promotes two key slogans: “One job, one year” and “Call before you quit.” The goal is to build “muscle memory” for work, making it an integral part of daily life.
In addition, short-term vocational training can be very effective. Many schools are offering accelerated certification programs in a wide range of middle-skill fields, from advanced manufacturing to allied health.Valencia College’s five-week basic construction program prepares people to enter the building construction field. [5] Students can earn “stackable” certificates, usually in three to eight weeks, and gain additional skills such as concrete finishing or sheet rock installation that qualify workers for more jobs and higher pay. With an estimated $9 billion in construction projects planned for the region over the next few years, there is a steady demand for these skills.
The Maricopa Skill Center, [6] a division of Gateway Community College, offers more than 23 different training certificates in health care, trades, business, and technology fields. These short-term boot-camp training programs equip people to earn higher wages in just three to four weeks. They show the students how to map each successive certification level back to specific jobs and also back to degree programs at the college.
Some workers will also seek to upskill for higher-paying jobs. A handful of innovative community colleges across the nation are meeting this challenge by building targeted, accelerated programs that train people for in-demand “middle skill” jobs (those that require more than a high school degree but less than a four-year college degree).
Recognizing that the majority of community college students are holding down jobs and raising children, and consequently not available for classes from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, leading schools are changing the education delivery model. San Jacinto College in Texas, for instance, offers welding classes between midnight and 2:00 a.m. to meet the needs of their working students, and there is a waiting list for these classes — which should not be surprising, given the persistent demand for welders across the nation. Rio Salado College blends online learning with on-campus supports. Students can enroll on any one of “48 different start dates” each year to earn their associate degrees in high-growth/high-demand fields on a schedule that fits their lives and work schedules.
Work is essential for economic stability and life success. The tools are growing to help even the lowest-skilled individuals become employable, secure work, and progress to better-paying jobs. The challenge is to embrace a paycheck as the earned reward for a job well done.
— Jo Kwong is Director of Economic Opportunity Programs at the Philanthropy Roundtable.
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Endnotes
1. Nicholas Eberstadt, “America’s Increasingly Irrelevant ‘Unemployment Rate’,” American Enterprise Institute, May 14, 2014,
https://www.aei.org/publication/americas-increasingly-irrelevant-unemployment-rate/ (accessed April 20, 2016).
2. Cincinnati Works, Website, https://cincinnatiworks.org/?gclid=CIv-oYq7yMsCFdgDgQodHXYB-Q (accessed April 20, 2016).
3. The Cara Program, Website, http://www.thecaraprogram.org (accessed April 20, 2016).
4. Clean slate, Website, http://www.cleanslatechicago.org (accessed April 20, 2016).
5. Valencia College, “Continuing Education:, Basic Construction,”
https://c2k.valenciacollege.edu/ce/CourseListing.asp?master_id=3793&master_version=1&course_area=CNB%20%20%20&course_number=6007%20%20%20&course_subtitle=00&_ga=1.136530416.1329936236.1458242124 (accessed April 20, 2016).
6. Maricopa Skill Center, Website, http://www.maricopaskillcenter.com (accessed April 20, 2016).
2016 Index of Culture and Opportunity
MAIN SECTIONS:
- Culture
- Poverty & Dependence
- General Opportunity
ABOUT:
- Preface by Jim DeMint
- Executive Summary
- Introduction by Michael Novak
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