WASHINGTON, D.C. – Following President Obama’s call for additional job training resources, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) urged passage of his Strengthening Employment Clusters to Organize Regional Success (SECTORS) Act of 2013, bipartisan legislation that would help dislocated workers train for high-tech jobs in their region.
“I’ve heard from too many Ohio employers who have vacant jobs, but a shortage of applicants with the right skills to fill them. If we’re going to get our economy back on track, we need to ensure that local workers are training for high-tech, local jobs,” Brown said. “By partnering local employers in one industry with colleges, workforce board, and labor unions, we can ensure a clusters-based job growth strategy that improves Ohio’s economic competitiveness while reducing our unemployment rate. The SECTORS Act would enable Ohio industries like biotechnology, clean energy, and advanced manufacturing to continue to grow and flourish.”
Due to new jobs and retirement, a recent report found that between 2008 and 2018 Ohio will create 967,000 job openings requiring postsecondary education or training. But according to Forbes, Ohio ranks 10th with the biggest looming skilled labor shortage in the country. By tailoring workforce development to the needs of regional, high-growth industries, more workers could receive placements and more businesses could be attracted to a region based on a “clusters” approach.
The SECTORS Act, which Brown introduced with U.S. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), would organize stakeholders connected to a regional industry, including business and labor leaders, education and training providers, and local workforce and education system administrators, to develop plans for growing that industry. Brown and Collins intend to work with colleagues to make the SECTORS Act part of the bipartisan Workforce Investment Act Reauthorization.
Additionally, the SECTORS Act would address the disparity between high unemployment rates and a shortage of skilled workers for many emerging industries by providing grants for sector partnerships among institutions of higher education, industry, organized labor, and workforce boards. These partnerships would create customized solutions for specific industries at the regional level. A sector approach can focus on the dual goals of promoting the long-term competitiveness of industries and advancing employment opportunities for workers.
Brown first authored the bipartisan SECTORS Act in 2008, with Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-ME) as the lead Senate sponsor and Patty Murray (D-WA) as a cosponsor. The SECTORS Act is currently endorsed by the Corporation for Ohio Appalachian Development (COAD), National Skills Coalition, National Network of Sector Partners, Ohio Workforce Commission (OWC), Policy Matters Ohio, Towards Employment, and United Way of Central Ohio.
Brown has traveled around Ohio to highlight how a SECTORS-style approach could help grow jobs in Ohio:
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