Bobby Curran grew up in a working-class neighborhood in Baltimore, finished high school, and followed his grandfather's steel-toed bootprints straight to Sparrows Point, a 3,000-acre sprawl of industry on the Chesapeake Bay. College was not part of the plan. A gritty but well-paying job at the RG Steel plant was Mr. Curran's ticket to a secure…

Despite the desire of many older adults to remain in the workforce, those without jobs face unprecedented durations of unemployment. Many of the unemployed lack current skills for jobs in demand and need to either upgrade their skills or be trained for a new occupation to become reemployed. An aging workforce, combined with the negative effects of…

Robert LaLonde of the University of Chicago and Daniel Sullivan of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago suggest that retraining through our nation's community colleges is a way to reduce the skills gaps of at least some of these displaced workers and increase their reemployment earnings. Although workers may still experience significant earnings…

Discusses conditions that contribute to worker displacement, and suggests that retraining and adult education are only part of the solution. Lists six other recommendations which, if implemented, would contribute to the resolution of this problem. (NRJ)

The author reports on a survey of 64 human resources managers. Forty-eight percent of the respondents indicated that their organizations had some type of retraining program. Topics covered include (1) retraining topics, (2) employee types, (3) program content, (4) trainee scheduling, (5) completion rates, (6) payment, and (7) program success. (CH)

To provide information on the relationship of automation to changing occupational patterns and related worker displacements, examples of automation and technological change in industry are given. Some summary findings are: (1) Technological advancements cause some jobs to disappear and also cause some new jobs to appear, (2) Many workers dispaced…

Suggests ways that the Job Training Partnership Act can serve as a local labor force development tool. Besides assisting "hardcore unemployed," education can take a proactive role, keeping up with the technology and needs of business and industry. In return, business and industry must support education with state-of-the-art machinery and…

Examines retraining transition processes as a basis for understanding adult learning and career change. Distinguishes between frame breaking and incremental change, describes associated learning methods, outlines transitional phases, and considers relationships between degrees of change and coping styles. Finds that variables reflecting career…

Combining travel and learning time may be one of the techniques used in adult education of the future. Other time-saving and individualized methods are also suggested. (MS)

A study was conducted to gain insight into how to persuade those in fields where job opportunities are declining to take advantage of existing retraining programs in order to avoid future displacement. Research was conducted through a series of focus groups in Chicago, Louisville, and Davenport. Participants in these sessions included men and…

Teacher education institutions need to accept responsibility for helping to keep vocational and technical teachers technically current. The University of Minnesota is helping inservice teachers keep up-to-date in three ways. The largest number of teachers have been served through short technical workshops. The workshops have covered a wide variety…

It has been suggested that older workers may be particuarly vulnerable to the obsolescence process. One definition of obsolescence directly implies that the obsolescence construct is a function of two elements, the job and the person. New technologies, new products, and new methods and procedures can result in job changes which in turn can compel…

Instituted by the Norwegian Association of Engineers and Technical Staff this program provides the necessary training to enable technical personnel to keep up with changing technology. (BH)

Presents the views of the Consortium for Worker Education (New York, New York), which advocates a formal schooling system to upgrade the skills of the American worker. The first step toward systemic worker education would be the passage of federal legislation to allow state and local governments to establish Workforce Development Boards to provide…