Published: Thursday, March 3, 2011
Congress
Workforce funds best investment
With Snohomish County unemployment rates hovering around 10 percent, it might surprise some to find many local companies have job openings they cannot fill.
Why? Because those looking for work often don't possess skills required for available jobs, or simply don't know how to find the jobs. It's these mismatches that Workforce Investment Act (WIA) funds are successfully resolving, yet the 2011 Continuing Resolution crafted by the U.S. House Appropriations Committee calls for elimination of all Workforce Investment funding, closing WorkSource employment and resource centers across our state on July 1. This is not just bad for the unemployed, it's bad for county businesses and labor.
During the past eight months, more than 26,000 residents utilized WorkSource services throughout Snohomish County. WorkSource centers provided job search assistance, workshops to perfect a résumé, learn to interview, reinvent careers, and support to find a job.
A recent study found employment was 17 percent higher for Workforce Investment Act participants than for non-participants, and the average annual earnings for participants was $10,000 higher compared to non-participants.
WorkSource Snohomish County and education partners offer specialized career advice, employment search assistance, and access to training programs leading to in-demand and higher-wage careers -- the very training that may mean the difference between working and remaining unemployed.
So why, in the midst of a fragile economy, would Congress cut these program funds?
Workforce Investment Act programs help working people survive and prosper, while providing businesses the critical support desperately needed to restore our economy. Please support them.
Dale Peinecke
Board Chair, Workforce Development Council Snohomish County
Why? Because those looking for work often don't possess skills required for available jobs, or simply don't know how to find the jobs. It's these mismatches that Workforce Investment Act (WIA) funds are successfully resolving, yet the 2011 Continuing Resolution crafted by the U.S. House Appropriations Committee calls for elimination of all Workforce Investment funding, closing WorkSource employment and resource centers across our state on July 1. This is not just bad for the unemployed, it's bad for county businesses and labor.
During the past eight months, more than 26,000 residents utilized WorkSource services throughout Snohomish County. WorkSource centers provided job search assistance, workshops to perfect a résumé, learn to interview, reinvent careers, and support to find a job.
A recent study found employment was 17 percent higher for Workforce Investment Act participants than for non-participants, and the average annual earnings for participants was $10,000 higher compared to non-participants.
WorkSource Snohomish County and education partners offer specialized career advice, employment search assistance, and access to training programs leading to in-demand and higher-wage careers -- the very training that may mean the difference between working and remaining unemployed.
So why, in the midst of a fragile economy, would Congress cut these program funds?
Workforce Investment Act programs help working people survive and prosper, while providing businesses the critical support desperately needed to restore our economy. Please support them.
Dale Peinecke
Board Chair, Workforce Development Council Snohomish County
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