Since the introduction of workplace computers in the 1970s, policymakers have been racing to outpace the workforce demands of the information age. To address concerns, policymakers have promoted an expansion of skills training to help workers keep up in the changing economy. Because the way people learn, work, and live is transforming, so should…

Public data and accountability are key to an inclusive economic recovery. We need data on how different workers and businesses are faring in the recovery, so we can hold policymakers accountable to equitable outcomes for those most impacted. Disparities and inequities in skills training programs can only be eliminated if there is high-quality…

Over two-thirds of all Illinois residents live in Chicago's metropolitan area. The third largest city in the United States and also the third most economically productive, the Windy City benefits from unrivalled industry diversity. Like any other city, however, Chicago faces the policy challenge of supporting well-paid employment opportunities for…

Achieving prosperity for all Americans could not be more urgent. Although the United States remains the most prosperous nation on earth, millions of citizens are losing faith in the American dream of upward mobility, and in American-style capitalism itself. This crisis of confidence has widened the divide afflicting American politics and cries out…

When it comes to digital literacy, how do we know what kind of skills America's workers need for the workplace, how they can best acquire them, and what competencies or credentials can help them signal their preparedness to employers? Over the past four months, National Skills Coalition staff interviewed business, education, and workforce leaders…

High-quality workforce training can help workers get good jobs, improve the efficiency of businesses, and boost productivity in the economy. Unfortunately, the United States supports too little workforce training, and the training it does support too often fails to lead to good jobs or boost productivity. To improve job quality, a range of reforms…

Businesses throughout the United States are facing a tight labor market and a growing need for skilled workers. At the same time, millions of U.S. adults have foundational skills gaps in areas such as literacy or numeracy. This issue is especially acute among Americans with disabilities, who are twice as likely as their non-disabled peers to have…

An estimated 339,000 workers were employed in foodservice operations in the nation's elementary and secondary schools. While news stories often focus on so-called "lunch ladies," the school foodservice workforce encompasses employees ranging from front-line cafeteria workers to chefs and food preparation staff to administrators and…

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) estimated that approximately 9% of current jobs within OECD member states are threatened with automation and digitalization--all significant successes and advances in artificial intelligence, robotics, and computer science. With such global changes and forecasts, in the labor…

The pandemic has caused a major economic shift for businesses and workers. Countless companies have had to quickly upskill their workers, equipping them with the skills they need to pivot to digital or remote services. As a result, the importance of efficiently and effectively training and onboarding workers with the right skills for the job has…

National Indigenous training and employment policy falls under the auspices of the Indigenous Advancement Strategy (IAS), an initiative which covers all facets of Indigenous social, economic, health and well-being across multiple Australian Government departments. Two of the main aims of the Jobs, Land and Economy component of the IAS are to…

The ethnic and racial diversity of the residents of the United States of America is one of our country's unique strengths. However, Black, Latinx, Pacific Islander, Native, and certain Asian American workers face wide racial inequities in educational attainment, employment, and income. Immigrants and English learners, the majority of whom are…

Federal legislation has driven and been receptive to the vision of a rigorous, relevant career and technical education (CTE) system integrated with academics and aligned across middle school, secondary school, and postsecondary education. This article uses a social policy analysis approach to trace the history of federal CTE policy throughout the…

This paper examines Canadian federal and cross-provincial higher education policy from 1960 to 1990, a critical time when provisions for vocational and adult training came under the auspices of governmental concern, justified under both an economic rationale and as a way to address persistent forms of inequality. The problematisation of skill…

In this paper, the authors first discuss the Neumark and Troske piece, and then compare the U.S. context to that in Europe and Korea, as described by the Caspar, Hartwig, and Moench and the Cho and Shin contributions. Although they are in basic agreement with Neumark and Troske on the extent and depth of the current employment situation, they…