What Happened?
Sioux Falls plans to launch a $500,000 workforce development project to address the needs of local businesses and residents. The project would bring together the public and private sector to build up a strong workforce and sustainable economic growth.
Goal
The Sioux Falls Department of Community Development is working to provide grants to key industries, organizations, businesses and academic institutions throughout the city. The grants would fuel new, collaborative training and workforce enhancement programs designed to attract new businesses to the area while lowering the unemployment rate, Argus Leader reported.
According to the Department of Community Development, the multi-sector effort must address four needs to be successful in the short and long term:
- Strategic planning
- Attracting and recruiting new employees
- Training and re-employment
- Education-related support
The overall costs initially will be around $500,000 total to be distributed in grants, each valued at less than $25,000 to ensure many organizations can participate in the collaboration. The launch will act as a pilot program working to get 2,300 current job openings filled by some of the 3,800 unemployed residents of Sioux Falls through training opportunities, Argus Leader reported.
Partnering with Philanthropy
Elsewhere in South Dakota, philanthropist T. Denny Sanford announced a $25 million donation will be made to develop a scholarship program through the state’s technical schools. South Dakota will match the donation to syphon $50 million into training programs for workforce development, AP reported.
The scholarship program will be available through four technical schools throughout South Dakota. The state wants to aggressively combat a rising unemployment rate - that reached 2.5 percent last fall – with significant investment in training programs that focus on in-demand skills, Argus Leader reported.
Workforce Mobility
The Milwaukee County Board recently announced an additional $200,000 in funding will be available for workforce development projects. The Barrett Visionary Development Group contributed $100,000 to the board, which was matched by the Milwaukee Area Workforce Investment Board.
The workforce initiative is being led by the county, with constant collaboration with the city of Milwaukee. The goal of the partnership is to help more than 500 workers gain the necessary job skills to fill open positions in the local economy.
Milwaukee is also embarking on redevelopment and streetcar projects designed to increase public access to the city’s downtown transit center, as well as navigate the city to jobs and other businesses. The $144 million Couture development project proposed by the Barrett Visionary Group will use local businesses to complete the effort, while the streetcar project is expected to create 350 new jobs and connect under-represented populations to higher-paying job opportunities.
Surveying the Need
The Southwest Alabama Workforce Development Council reviewed its year-end survey and found 4,500 skilled workers are needed to support local business growth within the next 12 months, representing a 6 percent increase year-over-year. The survey outlined what types of skills and experience employers are looking for so the council and local institutions can provide skills training to meet these needs, AL.com reported.
The main concern for employers looking to hire was the percentage of qualified candidates for entry-level positions. About 80 percent of businesses surveyed reported difficulty recruiting staff, while nearly 60 percent plan to increase investment in training programs to address shortfalls in the skilled workforce.
Put Them To Work
Gov1 has followed several grant-fueled workforce development projects designed to spur economic growth and get unemployed residents back to work.