What is Workforce Development?
Workforce development is critical to maintaining a strong economy and
competitive edge in today’s rapidly changing and expanding marketplace.
Today, workers must possess a wide variety of skill sets, a level of adaptability
previously unknown, and the ability and willingness to learn in order to
remain competitive in the job market. Enabling more residents to achieve
employment at a living wage. The term "living wage" means a wage
level that permits individuals and families to be self-sufficient within
the economy in which they live and work. Enabling more residents to earn
a living wage will also reduce dependence on all forms of public assistance.
The workforce development system has two
(2) primary customer groups:
- Employers – all businesses and industries… regardless
of size
- Workers – all current and future workers…of all
ages
Workers can be divided into three basic groups:
- Emerging workforce: persons, primarily youth, entering the workforce
for the first time;
- Existing workforce: persons currently in the workforce, including
under-employed and the "working poor";
- Transitional workforce: persons currently out of the workforce,
including welfare to work, previously incarcerated, and unemployed.
The challenge of workforce development is to ensure that the needs of
both customer groups are met. For employers, the workforce system should
ensure that there is a workforce of sufficient size and skill to support
continued economic vitality. For workers, the system should ensure that
individuals have opportunities to acquire the skills necessary to, at a
minimum, gain and keep employment that provides a living wage. This includes
not just those persons who are outside of the workforce or yet to enter
the workforce, but also those people who are currently working, but need
continued training and education to keep up with the demands of a highly
competitive and constantly changing world economy. There are myriad factors
that influence the level of need for workforce development programs. It
is important to identify the needs and characteristics of the different
populations that use services. Additionally, it is essential to understand
the economic environment in which we live and work.
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