Workforce Ready is a community initiative that will draw attention to workforce shortages that threaten to become more problematic over the next 10 years.
The local workforce need is especially great in the skilled trades, advanced technology and healthcare sectors.
The stakes are high. If no concerted action is taken, the region will lose 228 net workers while it creates over 15,000 net new local jobs in the next 10 years.
The good news is that action IS being taken. Community leaders, employers and our education systems are collaborating on initiatives to recruit, prepare and retain our future workforce.
News 8 has been privileged to report on many initiatives already underway in our education systems to address our future workforce needs. We've reported on the dramatic drop in students pursuing education degrees so the need to grow our workforce cuts across many career paths.
Going forward, we will devote more resources to reporting on and drawing attention to initiatives that speak to our community’s future workforce needs. One of those resources will be a public awareness campaign to keep this topic top-of-mind. It is called Workforce Ready. So, expect to see a lot of Workforce Ready public service announcements on News 8!
We hope this will encourage students, parents and the current workforce to become even more aware of all options out there to prepare themselves for those 15,000 jobs coming to our community.
We hope our Workforce Ready initiative will be a worthy effort to help stimulate and showcase further successes in the recruitment, preparedness and retention needs of our future workforce!
Workforce Ready News Stories will air in the 10PM News, and on News 8 This Morning 6:00AM-7:00AM, and then posted to News8000.com on this Workforce Ready page and WKBT social media channels.
