New Walker Workforce Development Bill

Here in Wisconsin the "skills gap" is not just an abstract idea bandied about by pundits and policymakers, but it is having some profound impacts in the statehouse.  This week Gov. Scott Walker signed a $132 million bill centered on workforce development issues that include developing a new labor market data system, $15 million for workforce training grants, increased support for the state's technical college system, and high school apprenticeship programs.  Unlike many things in Wisconsin government, the bill passed with bipartisan support. 

This new push for workforce development was largely informed by two reports that came out last year. The first, the "Be Bold 2" report was sponsored by Competitive Wisconsin and prepared by the Manpower Group: Competitive Wisconsin Be Bold 2 Study.  The second, "The Road Ahead" which is more commonly known as the Sullivan report, was authored by Tim Sullivan, former CEO of Bucyrus International: The Road Ahead Report.

One of the main arguments made by the state government and these reports is that high unemployment is directly attributable to the "skills gap," or the lack of skilled workers available for businesses to hire to do their work.  Some have taken issue with this causative link, such as economist Mark Levine at UW-Milwaukee, whose recent report on the skills gap is sub-titled "Separating Fact from Fiction": UW-Milwaukee Center for Economic Development

And you can see in recent news reports that the back and forth about the skills gap, its existence (or not) and what it should be telling policymakers (if anything) is becoming a hot news item: "Walker signs bill to close 'skills gap'"

For the purposes of this study, I'm not interested in discerning whether or not a skills gap exists, or whether or not it is the reason why the state (and nation) has a persistently high unemployment rate.  I'm not an economist and can't pretend to know my way around labor statistics or theory.  Similarly, I'm not a business owner and don't know the ins and outs of the marketplace.  But what I can, and am doing is talking to people to find out what is going on in the businesses, colleges, and universities across the state.  Ideally, I can straddle a line between what the statistics say and what people in the field are saying, to have something constructive to say about workforce development policy.