Though unemployment rates fell to
record low levels during the 1990s and
are still low by historic standards, that success has not translated directly into a steady reduction of poverty levels, as many workers are trying to support families on low wages. The problem is often not lack of ambition or availability of better jobs, but lack of skills and training. Although many businesses cannot get the skilled workers they need, small and mid-sized businesses have little incentive to train employees, because training programs are expensive, and as employees gain skills, they often move on to other employers.
That is why leadership to help workers acquire skills and become upwardly mobile must come from the public sector.
Among the most effective models are Regional Skills Alliances (RSAs), in which employers, public agencies, schools, and labor unions pool resources to train workers for emerging region-wide job opportunities. RSAs can be found on both the state and local level, training employees in a particular industry, educating high school students, or providing training for unemployed workers. The idea is that by targeting entire regions and industries rather than just a single company, RSAs disperse the costs of training and ease concerns about cherry-picking among competitors. The key to the RSA model is that it is industry led -- allowing employers, who are generally better positioned than government agencies to know what jobs are in demand, to identify the appropriate skills and knowledge needed for jobs in a given industry or region. But the public sector plays a vital supporting role, providing both funds and facilities.
One of the more extensive programs is the Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership (WRTP), centered in Milwaukee. WRTP was formed by group of metal-working firms, in conjunction with the AFL-CIO, local workforce development boards, and technical colleges. Instead of focusing on one field, WRTP offers training in many regional industries, such as manufacturing, health care and construction. They have even set up "career centers" for their patrons where, in addition to job training, community members can find counseling, youth apprenticeship programs, and other services. One former RSA, which has served as a model for subsequent programs, was the Massachusetts Software Council Fellowship Program, a private nonprofit corporation whose mission was to retrain workers for high-skill jobs in the software industry. Formed in 1993 by the Massachusetts Software & Internet Council and co-funded by the state of Massachusetts, the program trained more than 600 individuals for software jobs.
Another example is the Michigan Regional Skills Alliance (MiRSA), established by Gov. Jennifer M. Granholm in 2004. The project has led to the creation of some 32 RSAs across the state. Since the launch of MiRSA, more than 2,100 individuals have received training and 813 individuals were placed into employment as employers around the state realize the benefits of the initiative.
Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership
www.wrtp.org/
Michigan Regional Skills Alliances (MiRSA)
www.michigan.gov/rsa
Massachusetts Software Council Fellowship Program
www.masoftware.org/ed_workforce/previous_activities.asp
Robert D. Atkinson, Building New Skills for the New Economy: Regional Skills Alliances, Progressive Policy Institute, February 1998
www.ppionline.org/ppi_ci.cfm?
knlgAreaID=107&subsecID=175&contentID=1379
Robert D. Atkinson, Building Skills for the New Economy: A Policymaker's Handbook, Progressive Policy Institute, April 2001
www.ppionline.org/ppi_ci.cfm?
knlgAreaID=107&subsecID=175&contentID=3281
High Performance Partnerships: Winning Solutions for Employers and Workers, Center on Wisconsin Strategy at the University of Wisconsin, Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development, 1999
www.icesa.org/sections/pdf/dwdbook.pdf
Building An Industry Skills Standards System for Vermont: A Final Report from the Technical Education Standards Design Committee
www.hric.state.vt.us/Tech%20Ed%20Report.htm
/Tech%20Ed%20Report.htm
Industry-Led Training: The New Labour Experiment, Progressive Policy Institute, Press Release, January 2005
www.ppionline.org/ppi_ci.cfm?contentid=253100&knlgAreaID=126&subsecid=900096
knlgAreaID=107&subsecID=175&contentID=1379
Hon. Robin Schimminger
State Assemblyman
3514 Delaware Avenue
Buffalo, NY 14217
(716) 873-2540
Rhandi Berth
Assistant Director
Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership
532 E. Capital Drive Avenue
Milwaukee, WI 53212
(414) 906-4204
berthr@wrtp.org
Geri Guardino
Assistant Director
Programming and Planning Development
Rhode Island HRIC
R.I. Department of Labor and Training/HRIC
1511 Pontiac Ave. Building 72
Cranston, RI 02920
(401) 462-8860
Katie Campbell
Policy Analyst
Progressive Policy Institute
600 Pennsylvania Ave., SE, Suite 400
(202) 546-0007
(202) 544-5002 (fax)
kcampbell@ppionline.org
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