Workforce Developments

Unemployment extension signed into law!

This morning the president signed into law a bill (HR 2642) that will extend unemployment benefits for an additional thirteen weeks for long-term unemployed workers. Some relevant links:

• Analysis of key measures in HR 2642 from the Associated Press;
• Remarks at the signing from President Bush;
• Text of the bill;
• History of the bill from OpenCongress.org.

This piece of legislation is enormously important to many Americans. While I've been covering its long, strange trip through Congress since early April, the number of daily hits on this blog has increased more than eight-fold, most of them from people seeking out information about the unemployment extension. Many readers have commented on my earlier posts, telling their own personal stories. In particular, check out this post from April 16, and this post from May 19.

All my posts on the unemployment extension can be found here. For more information on the extension, visit UnemployedWorkers.org.

My thanks to everyone who commented here. Good luck to all of you in your job searches.

Where the green jobs are

A great new report from the Political Economy Research Institute at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, identifies the jobs that can be created by six key investments to address climate change and build a green economy. They've also run the numbers, showing what those jobs pay in twelve states.

The six investments highlighted by authors Robert Pollin and Jeannette Wicks-Lim in Job Opportunities for a Green Economy are

1. Building Retrofitting
2. Mass Transit
3. Energy-Efficient Automobiles
4. Wind Power
5. Solar Power
6. Cellulosic Biofuels

Yeah, I had to look up that last one too.

Click on this table from the report to get a better look at all the different jobs that could be generated by these investments. From New York to Oregon, community colleges, businesses and governments are climbing on the "green collar jobs" bandwagon. This report provides more information to help keep that wagon moving forward.

One in every 100 Americans

Earlier this year the Pew Center on the States issued a report finding that right now, one out of every 100 American adults is incarcerated in prison or jail. That's the highest in U.S. history, and it presents an enormous challenge to American society and political leaders.

On the same day the Pew report hit the streets, 150 mayors and other city leaders met together at the Mayors Summit on Reentry and Employment to discuss what can be done at the municipal level to reduce recidivism. 750,000 people leave prison or jail each year. They leave with no better job skills than they arrived with, and perhaps with less. They often leave with drug and mental health problems, and many of them return to urban communities with limited job opportunities.

Mayors across the U.S. have realized they can't wait for national or even state leadership. They must take on the challenge of helping former prisoners re-enter society at the municipal level.

Inspired by the mayors summit, Public/Private Ventures (P/PV) has issued a report that summarizes some of the best practices presented there, as well as previous research: From Options to Action: A Roadmap for City Leaders to Connect Formerly Incarcerated Individuals to Work (executive summary). They make six key recommendations for how cities can begin to tackle the reentry challenge:

1. Get the lay of the land  In other words, do the research and gather data about the size and scope of prisoner reentry in your community, and the services available to them.
2. Assemble a task force of all the public and private agencies and organizations who are or could be involved in reentry.
3. Make collaboration work  All those partners have to work together in a meaningful way, not just sign off on each others' grant proposals.
4. Address city-level barriers to employment  These can include professional licensing requirements that prevent ex-prisoners from working in certain fields, but aren't related to their conviction.
5. Engage the business community  This can range from educating them about federal and state incentives for hiring ex-prisoners to creating new incentives at the local level, or just convincing local businesses to take a chance.
6. Take it to the next level  Work with state and federal officials to make policy changes there that will help local reentry efforts.

It's not rocket science. The problem is that there isn't a concerted, coordinated effort at the federal or state level to address prisoner reentry. It's viewed as risky for elected officials to take on, as they might be seen as "soft on crime." That's why local governments are going to have to lead. Passage of the Second Chance Act (HR 1593) earlier this year will make some funding available for reentry programs, but it won't be nearly enough.

The P/PV report includes examples of programs that have worked, and quotes from mayors and other leaders in the field. If you have a reentry program or are thinking about getting engaged with the problem, whether you're a nonprofit, government official or private businessperson, this report is a good place to start.

Stop the rescission before it happens

This alert arrived in my inbox this morning from Rachel Gragg at The Workforce Alliance:

As states absorb the impact of the $250 million 2008 WIA rescission, we want to make sure history doesn't repeat itself. Like last year, Congress is going to have to prioritize programs for investment. We must ensure that House appropriators don't hand down another WIA rescission this year.

An economic "turndown" is absolutely the wrong time to cut workforce training dollars. Workers need ever more skills to compete in a global workforce, and businesses need an even more skilled workforce to compete in the global marketplace.

TWA offers this online tool to help you send an email, letter or fax to key members of Congress. They also encourage you to follow up with a phone call. In addition, you can write in support of a letter recently sent from Senators Kohl (D-Wisconsin), Cantwell (D-Washington) and Collins (R-Maine) asking their peers in the Appropriations and Labor committees to restore funding cut by the 2008 WIA rescission.

Unemployment extension fails one day, revived the next

Congress is still working it, even as I write.

Yesterday (June 11, 2008), the House of Representatives brought forward HR 5749, a standalone measure that would provide an emergency extension of benefits to long-term unemployed workers. 13 weeks for most states; up to 26 weeks for states with high unemployment levels, including Michigan and California.

They used a procedure that required 2/3 of the House to vote yes to pass. It failed, but not by much. 279 members voted for the extension (290 votes were needed): 49 Republicans and 230 Democrats. The plan is to bring it up for a vote again today on a procedure that only requires a simple majority. This bill has been on one wild ride since it was first proposed as part of last year's economic stimulus package.

Despite last week's surprising jump in unemployment, Bush continues to threaten to veto this important legislation. For the most recent updates on the unemployment extension, visit the UnemployedWorkers.org page from the National Employment Law Project.

This is the news as of June 12. For my most recent post on the extension, click here.

UPDATE: At about 3 p.m. their time today, June 12, the House passed the unemployment extension by a vote of 274 to 137. Now, on to the Senate.

Congress on the verge of dropping unemployment extension

If they do, it will be the second near-miss for this much-needed economic stimulus.

Majority Leader Steny Hoyer announced yesterday that the House would probably drop from an Iraq/Afghanistan spending bill (HR 2642) the 13 week emergency extension for workers who've exhausted their unemployment benefits. This after both the House and Senate passed versions of the bill that include the extension. Bush has vowed to veto the entire bill, saying it would cost too much.

HR 2642 also includes a popular extension of the GI Bill that would expand veterans' access to education. Bush, after saying the bill costs too much, asked Congress to expand the veterans benefits further to apply to their spouses and children.

The National Employment Law Project is urging those who support the unemployment extension to contact their member of Congress and urge Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi not to drop the provision. Such extensions have been passed  five times in American history, including one extension signed into law by Bush's father.

Here's the long, strange history of the emergency unemployment benefits extension:

• Originally included as part of the HR 5140, the original stimulus package passed by Congress and signed into law in February. Missed being included by one vote. 
• Introduced as separate legislation (HR 4934 , S 2544 and  HR 5749)
• Folded into the Iraq/Afghanistan spending bill (HR 2642) by both the House and Senate 

The House is expected to take up the bill early next week.

Readers talk about the unemployment benefits extension

Over the past few weeks I've been closely following the effort in Congress to pass legislation for an emergency extension of unemployment benefits for folks who've been out of work for a long time. Currently it's attached to HR 2642. It has passed both the House and Senate but in different forms, so they'll have to meet to reconcile differences. Bush has vowed to veto the bill.

During this time, Workforce Developments readership has shot up, and I've been getting more comments than usual. Overwhelmingly, the visits are from people Googling phrases like "unemployment extension," and the comments have mostly been on those posts. In other words, this is of interest to a many, many people.

It's worth hearing from people who would be personally affected by the extension. Here's a sampling of those comments, in their own words:

Come on lets get some extended benefits going. I am a hard worker and have been laid off from full time work since July 2007. My unemployment benefits ended the first of Jan and all I have been able to find is 12 hours of work a week at $8 an hour and I did not get that until the last week of Feb. I could use some help here!!

        --Laurie

I've been unemployed since November. And I've been trying to find work for MONTHS!! Even the temp agencies are slow, and when I do work with them, I can't interview for a new position. My unemployment ran out months ago, and the debt collectors are calling at all hours. Where is my $600 going? Bills. Such a silly move on Bush's part. He is so detached...

        --Argh

Unemployment is not my way of life and I'm sure it is not the way of life for 99% of the people who are now jobless. It has been a very humble experience and I have learned that being unemployed has a horrible stigma attached. My benefits ran out two weeks ago. We have a child in college and my benefit check was covering her rent. She is not qualified for ANY grants or FASFA money due to our 2007 tax return (because our combined income was tied into my previous employment)a Home equity loan is out since our home has DECREASED in value and student loans are hard to find plus interest rates are high. We are struggling to pay bills with one income not to mention health care costs. We have done everything right in the past and now I feel like we need just alittle help along with the other thousands who just need to eat. I guess that is hard to understand when you are living in the best public housing (the White House) and receiving free lifetime health care etc...like George Bush is.

        --Kristie

I RAN OUT OF BENEFITS 4/2006 , IF THEY PASS THE EXTENSION FOR THE 26 WEEKS WILL I BE RECIEVE ANY OF THIS MONEY?

        --Ken

please pass this I've not been able to find work since July 2007

        --Larry

please vote yes.my wife and i are in our early 70s and can,t find work. our benefts have expired. THANK YOU!!!!

        --Harold

For updates on the bill, resources for unemployed workers, and to join a discussion about unemployment, visit the National Employment Law Center's UnemployedWorkers.org.

Thanks to Michele Martin at Bamboo Project blog whose 31 Day Comment Challenge inspired this post.

Senate passes unemployment extension

Yesterday the U.S. Senate passed HR 2642, the Iraq/Afghanistan spending bill that includes a provision for an emergency extension of unemployment benefits. The bill passed by the Senate also includes a provision to expand the G.I. Bill, providing free college education to service members after three years of active duty.

The vote was 75 for to 22 against, enough to override the veto President Bush has promised. Last week HR 2642 passed the House with a large majority, but not enough to override a veto.

New regs to govern temporary worker visas

The Bush administration is rewriting regulations that govern H-2B visas. Those are visas for temporary and seasonal workers in non-agricultural business. Other certification categories for foreign workers include H-1B (specialty workers), H-1C (nurses in disadvantaged areas) and H-2A (agricultural workers).

According to the L.A. Times, key changes to the H-2B rules include

• The definition of "temporary" will be expanded from 10 months to three years for industries such as construction and shipyards;
• Employers wanting to use the visas will apply directly to the federal government, rather than going through their state workforce agency; and
• Employers will no longer fill out paperwork demonstrating they have complied with all rules, and will only be required to attest that they have.

By law, 66,000 new H-2B visas may be granted every year. These regulatory changes do not change that cap.

For more on current regulations for certifying foreign workers, click here.

Web 2.0: coming to a government agency near you

Last week I highlighted how foundations are using new interactive online technologies to get out their message and influence policymaking. Today, let's talk government.

Government? That bastion of slow-moving bureaucracy? Embracing change? Engaging their own workers in problem solving?

The May 2008 issue of Governing magazine has a big article about how government agencies are using wikis for improve internal management, Working in Wiki. Don't know what a "wiki" is? Click here for a short glossary of some key terms they use.

Authors Perlman and Maynard explain why it's important - and why it's so challenging - for government agencies to embrace these new technologies:

The wiki world is all about making government more effective by enlarging the idea bank and making it possible to tap into the minds of those all along the job line — from workers in the field to middle managers to top brass. It's like the old Suggestion Box, only more specific, immediate and rewarding. And more challenging. The adjustments needed in terms of mindset and operations can be huge, even for the chief information officers of government agencies. They have to master the new tools, then persuade their agencies to experiment with the technologies, and then support them as they do.

They offer examples of government agencies that are on the cutting edge, from the chief information officer for Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, to California's largest public health district, to the community mental health department in Washtenaw County, Michigan. Take this latter case for example - the agency is using wikis internally to keep their caseworkers updated as new information is available. Case workers can add to the wiki as they learn about new resources for clients, making that info available to their peers. Sound like something a workforce development agency could do?

Check out this article. You might be surprised to learn what other government agencies are doing.

(Thanks to Virginia Hamilton of the California Workforce Association for passing this one along!)

Dept of Labor responds to audit

Yesterday at the WIRED Academy in Boston, DOLETA's Acting Assistant Secretary Brent Orrell gave a response to the Inspector General's audit findings on the president's High Growth Job Training Initiative that's worth reading:

The Inspector General at the Labor Department issued a report yesterday that was very critical of number of our grantees under the High Growth Initiative.  The key issue they cited was the lack of measurable outcomes demonstrating that these projects constituted promising practices. 

We disagreed forcefully with the IG's conclusions and stand behind the Department's High Growth investments as a prudent and successful program to expand the opportunities for American workers.

Nevertheless, the focus of the IG's audit should put all of our WIRED regions on notice.  WIRED has always been about more than just training figures.  But with that flexibility and focus on innovation comes an increased risk that the auditors and investigators that follow us will question the use of funds. 

Many of you focused on the common performance measures as a way to protect against that risk and that is certainly one component of demonstrating value.  But many of the projects that you have undertaken do not easily lend themselves to judgment from the common measures.  That is why the individual metrics that you developed are so critical to capturing the overall importance and impact of these investments. 

So please bear in the mind that while we consider the sustainability of your projects and the long term success of your regions the best indicators of success, there are others that are going to ask direct and difficult questions about your use of taxpayer dollars and the products, results, and value that was received from them.  The ETA leads and our grants office will obviously be more than willing to help on areas where you have questions.

As an evaluator, I second Orrell's comment about the importance of developing individual outcome measures that capture the unique value and impact of any project or program. Certainly, limited funding and intense public scrutiny often cause public officials to stick with the tried, true and safe, at the expense of innovation and creativity in program design. (If only DOLETA could be a bit more flexible and creative with the common performance measures!)

You can read the full text of Orrell's remarks at the Academy here (registration required), and DOLETA's response to the audit is reprinted in full at the end of the OIG's report.

Audit questions effectiveness, oversight of president's labor initiative

Everybody hates to be audited, whether by the Internal Revenue Service, Office of Management and Budget or Office of the Inspector General (OIG). The U.S. Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration has just been given a not-so-clean bill of health by their OIG.

As the Washington Post reported yesterday (and the Chronicle of Higher Ed blog picked up), the Inspector General at DOL has just completed a second audit (read it here) on the president's High Growth Job Training Initiative (HGJTI), administered by ETA's Business Relations Group. Like the first audit, this one finds lots of room for improvement. The title tells the tale: Selected HGJTI Grants: Value Not Demonstrated.

A few highlights from the new report:

• 87% of all 157 HGJTI grants awarded ($271 million total) between June 2001 and March 2007 were awarded through non-competitive processes;
• Of the ten grants audited in detail, five included a training component; and
• Four of the nine grants that included leveraged funds as part of their proposals could not demonstrate that $20.5 million promised had been provided.

The Inspector General also found fault with ETA's approach on outcomes for these grants. Of the ten grants they audited,

• Seven of the ten grantees did not meet all of their objectives;
• Six of the ten grantees did not have clearly defined objectives so their success or failure cannot be measured.

As a result, they conclude ETA has promoted products and activities as successful even in cases where it is not possible to know if they met their goals. The OIG describes these findings as "in conflict with the President's mandate that agencies be 'citizen-centered' and 'results-oriented.'"

With a lame duck president in his final months in office, an audit report on his HGJTI might seem a moot point. As much as anything, it's the media coverage we have to look out for. Here's how the Post is reporting it:

"This report reveals a double insult for American taxpayers -- not only did the Bush administration's Labor Department handpick the organizations to receive DOL grants, but many of those organizations failed to deliver measurable results," [Iowa Sen. Tom] Harkin said.

The Chronicle of Higher Ed points out that "criticism in the report appears more aimed at poor oversight and lax accountability measures from the Labor Department than at the recipients themselves."

What does this mean to local workforce boards, one-stops, community colleges and nonprofits providing workforce development services? Is this a surprise, or business as usual? Do you think DOL has gotten a fair shake from its Inspector General, or not? 

The Governator joins the call to extend unemployment benefits

Last week California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger joined the call for Congress to pass HR 4934, which would extend unemployment (UI) benefits for people who've been out of work for more than six months. Earlier in April New York Governor David Paterson wrote to Congress urging passage of the bill.

In his letter Schwarzenneger points out

Federal funding for unemployment insurance administration has not been adjusted for inflation since 1995.  For the last three years alone, the federal funding shortfall to states is approaching $1 billion.  For fiscal year 2008, the national UI administrative funding appropriation has been reduced by an estimated $110 million.  Roughly $30 million would have come to serve unemployed workers in California.

You can read the full text of the governor's letter and press release here.

The National Employment Law Project has calculated that every dollar of unemployment benefits paid out boosts the economy by $2.15.

For more on unemployment insurance and the emergency extension, click here.

Unemployment lines image source

Does it pay to work so hard?

Monday I posted about the Top ten hardest working countries in the world, according to OECD's Factbook 2008 data. I've looked a little closer at the data and asked the question, Does it pay to work so hard?

Take a look at these two tables, both built from data in the Factbook. The first lists the top ten countries according to how many hours the average employee works, and shows the gross national income per capita for each. In all of these countries, the average employee works more than the overall OECD average of 1,777 hours per year:

In this second table, the top ten countries with the highest gross national income per capita are listed in order, along with the number of hours worked, per worker per year:

In all but one of these countries, the average hours worked is less than the OECD average of 1,777 per worker per year. And yet, gross national income per capita is higher than all but one of the hardest working countries in the first table. In fact, only one country appears on both tables, the United States. The disconnect between hours worked and per capita income is striking. Clearly, something more than just hard work creates wealth in the wealthier OECD countries. 

No, this data doesn't take into account income distribution within countries. However, as labor markets become ever more globalized, more workers may find themselves making decisions about where they want to work based on this kind of information. If I could work less and earn more - perhaps significantly more - by moving across a border or two, I just might think it's worthwhile.

Dept of Labor priorities and the "hardest to serve"

Earlier this year I wrote about what's the ultimate purpose of workforce development (click to read part 1 and part 2)? I worry that our effort to serve everyone and to serve employer needs first often comes at the expense of those we refer to as "hardest to serve." Not because we care less about them, but because we have to make difficult decisions about how to invest dwindling resources. I got some terrific feedback from different points of view, so I know I'm not the only person in the nation's workforce development system worried about this.

Just last month at a conference of the National Association of State Workforce Agencies, ETA's Acting Assistant Secretary Brent Orrell addressed this issue in his remarks (emphasis added):

Some have suggested that focusing on this [hard-to-serve] population is inconsistent with ETA's overall approach to serving high growth industries. I could not disagree more for reasons relating both to the demand and supply side of the equation. From the demand side, I believe there is general agreement that from a demographic standpoint, we don't have a single worker to waste. With the aging of the U.S. population, industry, government, education and civil society will be under increasing pressure to assure that we maximize our human capital. That means populations that have been disconnected from the workforce will be needed more than ever in the coming decades. From the standpoint of sustaining economic growth, we will have to work harder to assure that these workers are equipped with the skills they need to participate in the economy.

There are also supply side reasons that we are going to have to focus on these hard-to-serve populations. From a moral and ethical standpoint, I don't believe there is such a thing as a dispensable human being. In order for the United States to remain true to its principles that all men and women are created equal, we will have to give more thought and effort to integrating our hard-to-serve into the mainstream of our social and economic life. Families will have to be strengthened to do a better job of raising their kids. Schools will have to do a better job of educating poor and disadvantaged children. Civil society organizations will need to do more to mentor and assist individuals, families and children living in difficult circumstances. And, yes, the workforce system will have to do more to provide effective training and support services to these populations. Working together, we can help these populations gain the first rung on the career ladders of our rapidly changing economy. These should be matters of special urgency for all of us. I can tell they are for me, and they will be a focus of my work over the next 9 months.

The full text of Orrell's remarks are available here.
 

What's your response? How does this debate play itself out at your state or local workforce board or one-stop?

It's time to extend unemployment benefits

When Congress passed the recent economic stimulus package that has the IRS preparing $600 checks for most working Americans, another provision in the bill was struck down, by a single vote. That would have extended unemployment (UI) benefits to hundreds of thousands of long-term unemployed workers.

Congress is stepping up pressure to pass a separate bill that would enact the extension, HR 4934 (text here, or summary here). The bill would also fund summer jobs programs for youth, and investments in infrastructure construction projects that would create new jobs, a concept I've written about a lot on this blog.

Under current law (click here for a history of UI), unemployment benefits run out after 26 weeks (6 months). The National Employment Law Project estimates more than 3 million Americans will exhaust their benefits this year. They will be left with no income, and no government support when that occurs. Congress has enacted UI extensions five times, including one G.H.W. Bush signed into law, so this neither unprecedented nor unfamiliar. Newspapers have editorialized in favor of the extension, and even some Republicans are jumping on the bandwagon. Bush rejected the idea again on Monday.

New York Governor David Paterson wrote to his Congressional representatives last week (full letter here) urging passage of the unemployment benefits extension, saying

As you are aware, an extension of UI benefits during a downturn is a particularly effective economic stimulus because the benefits are both well-targeted — to areas and industries most affected by economic slowdowns — and are temporary. It puts money into the hands of workers and families who need assistance the most and are most likely to spend it immediately on basic essentials. Further, the money invested in extended benefits flows immediately to local businesses, which in turn provides an additional economic boost.

Why this provision was cut from the original stimulus package in the first place is a mystery. Six hundred bucks a person is chump change compared to the scope of the growing recession. Let's push Congress to get it right this time.

Image source: Social Security Administration

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Update Apr 17: Welcome to readers arriving from OpenCongress.org. If this is your first time on the Workforce Developments blog, click over to my page for first-time visitors.

Community based money for community colleges

In case you haven't heard the news yet, DOLETA recently announced the most recent winners of its $125 million prize awarded through the President's Community-Based Job Training Grants. The grants fund strategic partnerships between the workforce investment system, employers, community colleges and other training providers, for training workers in high growth, high demand industries.

As before (click here for an analysis of previous CBJT grantees), community colleges were the big winners, pulling down nearly 89% ($110.6 million) of all funds awarded. Seven awards went to non-community college organizations, including one-stop centers, state workforce agencies and county governments. A few more facts about the winners:

• The largest grant, just shy of $2.5 million, went to the Cleveland/Cuyahoga One-Stop Career Center, for a health care project;
• Smallest grant was $500,000, for a construction project led by New Mexico State University - Carlsbad;
• Ohio was the big winner among the states, pulling down nearly $6.5 million. California was #2 ($5.9 M), Michigan took #3 ($5.8 M), Florida was #4 ($5.8 M), and rounding out the list at #5 was Illinois ($5.6 M).

Big winner industry-wise was Health Care with 35% of all grant funds, followed by Advanced Manufacturing with 22%. The full list of grant awardees can be found here.

Supply and demand, workforce development style

Here's how it works in the for-profit business world: When demand for a product increases, the company increases the supply.

Here's how it seems to be working in the workforce development world: When demand for services increases, funding is cut, forcing services providers to decrease the supply.

It's not logical, and it's going to hurt both our workforce and employers in the long run. But don't take my word for it. Here's how the Bakersfield Californian puts it:

Makes you wonder what the Bush administration is thinking. We're being economically "stimulated" with $600 checks so we can buy Japanese-made television sets, while displaced U.S. workers are reaching the end of their unemployment benefits, and federal funding for programs to help them retrain and find new jobs is being cut.

That's in response to a recent announcement that Employers' Training Resource, the local one-stop operator, has been forced to shutter one of its three offices. In 2001 ETR received $42 million in WIA funding. By this year that had been whittled down to $18.2 million. Word is next year's funding level will be just over $15 million. That as the unemployment rate in Kern County rose from 9.4% in December to 9.9 in January, nearly double the national average.

It's happening in education, too, the place where most of America's workforce gains its basic skills. Last week, just as notices were being sent out to 10,000 California teachers warning they may be laid off if holes in next year's budget can't be filled, more than a hundred tech industry business leaders met in San Diego to discuss how difficult it is to attract well-trained scientific workers to their city.

Dean Calbreath at the San Diego Union Tribune noted the irony, pointing out that California spends $8,067 per student in public education, $700 below the national average, and far behind states that invest at levels above $10,000.

There is no pure corollary between education spending and academic achievement. But it's probably not a coincidence that Vermont, Connecticut, Massachusetts and New Jersey hold top rankings for mathematics and reading scores, while California languishes with other low-spending states such as Louisiana and Mississippi.

When people lose jobs, they often take advantage of the opportunity to go back to school and gain new skills so they can better compete on the job market. That should be happening in our nation's workforce development system. Now, while people are out of work, we should be increasing services to help America's workers prepare for the jobs that will emerge when times are better. That would be a meaningful investment in our workers, businesses, economy, and the future.

Help for the average bear

Turns out I wasn't joking when I talked about workforce development-style madness Friday. That same day, I got the following in my inbox:

1. Update on efforts to restore funding to NOVA, which runs the one-stops and other workforce services in California's Silicon Valley. They no longer provide services on Fridays due to budget cuts;
2. Call from the Workforce Alliance to press Congress to restore $2 billion the White House proposes to cut from employment and training programs in the 2009 budget (didn't we do this last year?);
3. Federal Reserve announcement that it would bail out Wall Street investment bank Bear Stearns, and
4. This memorable quote from Bush's speech to the Economic Club of New York: "You've helped make our country in many ways the economic envy of the world."

All this, only a week after the Department of Labor announced a third consecutive month of job losses, combined with 644,000 people leaving the workforce entirely.

This morning we wake up to learn that over the weekend, the Feds approved giving JPMorgan Chase a $30 billion credit line to buy Bear Stearns.

Makes me wonder what help the Feds plan to extend to the average bear. Bigger print on mortgage documents isn't going to cut it for the average American worker. A check for $600 won't begin to put a dent in the average American's annual expenses, especially not those who've lost their jobs. Cuts to employment and training programs at a time when more American companies are eliminating jobs and putting people out of work may seem penny-wise, but is pound-foolish.

If you're interested in helping out the average American bear, here are a few places to start:

• Sign the petition in support of funding for NOVA, and
• Send a letter to your Senator urging them to support more funding for employment and training.

Workforce development outcomes in the real world

30 y/o research organization (non-smoker, HWP) seeks workforce development groups of any age for data sharing and possible long-term relationship. 

Public/Private Ventures (P/PV) is looking for workforce development organizations to participate in its ongoing Benchmarking Project. They're gathering data from real-world organizations, in order to develop meaningful benchmarks and outcomes for practitioners, policymakers, and funders in the field. All they want from you is data (click here for a list of specifics). 

What do you get in return?

1. A chance to compare your outcomes anonymously with similar practitioners in the field;
2. Access to free learning activities; and
3. Input into a process that will give funders and policymakers more realistic expectations of what we can achieve in workforce development.

Evaluator Marty Miles, author of Good Stories Aren't Enough (which I highly recommend), is heading up this benchmarking project. Seventy workforce development organizations participated in 2007. To learn how you can join in, get on one of their informational calls, or contact Marty at 212-822-2413 or by email.