Regional Delivery of Workforce Development

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Regional Delivery of Workforce Development

• John Twomey
• Workforce Development Network
• April 26, 2007

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Purpose of Todays Session

• For over 40 years, workforce development in the
  United States has had largely defined roles
  Federal, State, and Local
• Recently a new emphasis has been placed on
  Regional connections between Economic Development
  and Workforce Development
• I hope this session will give you something to
  think about, and allow you to help shape these
  efforts in your state

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What Well Talk About Today

• Will there be a defined regional role in WIA
  Reauthorization?
• Where is this push for greater emphasis on
  regional coming from?
• Geography and Boundaries
• Some Regional Models
• What are your next steps
• Resources to dig a little deeper

4
Whats the Big Deal.

• People have been talking about Regional
  forever
• Weve been doing regional projects for a long
  time, whats the big deal

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What does current WIA law say about regional
delivery ??

• Section 101. Definitions
• (18) Labor market area.--The term labor
  market area'' means an economically integrated
  geographic area within which individuals can
  reside and find employment within a reasonable
  distance or can readily change employment
  without changing their place of residence. Such
  an area shall be identified in accordance with
  criteria used by the Bureau of Labor Statistics
  of the Department of Labor in defining such areas
  or similar criteria established by a Governor.

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What does current WIA law say about regional
delivery ??

• SEC. 134. USE OF FUNDS FOR EMPLOYMENT AND
  TRAINING ACTIVITIES. (a) Statewide Employment
  and Training Activities.-- (2)
  Required statewide employment and training
  activities.-- (B) Other
  required statewide employment and training
  activities.- (iii) providing incentive grants to
  local areas for regional cooperation
  among local boards (including local boards for a
  designated region as described in section
  116(c)), for local coordination of activities
  carried out under this Act, and for exemplary
  performance by local areas on the
  local performance measures

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What does current WIA law say about regional
delivery ??

• SEC. 116. LOCAL WORKFORCE INVESTMENT AREAS.(c)
  Regional Planning and Cooperation.-- (1)
  Planning.--As part of the process for developing
  the State plan, a State may require regional
  planning by local boards for a designated region
  in the State. The State may require the local
  boards for a designated region to participate in
  a regional planning process that results in the
  establishment of regional performance measures
  for workforce investment activities authorized
  under this subtitle. The State may award regional
  incentive grants to the designated regions that
  meet or exceed the regional performance measures.

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From WIA Regulations

• Sec. 661.290 Under what circumstances may States
  require Local Boards to take part in regional
  planning activities? (a) The State may require
  Local Boards within a designated region (as
  defined at 20 CFR 660.300) to
• (1) Participate in a regional planning process
  that results in regional performance measures for
  workforce investment activities under title I of
  WIA. Regions that meet or exceed the regional
  performance measures may receive regional
  incentive grants
• (2) Share, where feasible, employment and other
  types of information that will assist in
  improving the performance of all local areas in
  the designated region on local performance
  measures and

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From WIA Regulations

• (3) Coordinate the provision of WIA title I
  services, including supportive services such as
  transportation, across the boundaries of local
  areas within the designated region. (b) Two or
  more States may designate a labor market area,
  economic development region, or other appropriate
  contiguous subarea of the States as an interstate
  region. In such cases, the States may jointly
  exercise the State's functions described in this
  section. (c) Designation of intrastate
  regions and interstate regions and their
  corresponding performance measures must be
  described in the respective State Plan(s). For
  interstate regions, the roles of the respective
  Governors, State Boards and Local Boards must be
  described in the respective State Plans.
  (d) Unless agreed to by all affected chief
  elected officials and the Governor, these
  regional planning activities may not substitute
  for or replace the requirements applicable to
  each local area under other provisions of the
  WIA. (WIA sec. 116(a).)

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IF WIA is reauthorized this year, will there be
some new legislated regional role ?

• Senator Kennedy is a strong supporter of local
  control, but having said that. (some regional
  approach) is not anathema to us J. D. LaRock
  to NACo leadership March 3, 2007
• If there are too many competing positions from
  groups, WIA Reauthorization might go to the back
  of the line Beth Buelhmann to U. S. Conference
  of Mayors Workforce Development Council, Jan.
  07 (specifically speaking to regional question)
• Were looking at some regional delivery, probably
  incentivized- Congressman Hinojosas workforce
  staff- March 2007

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IF WIA is reauthorized this year, will there be
some new legislated regional role ?

• The competitiveness debate is pushing WIA toward
  reauthorization
• The CEO of Intel told us that We have done some
  forecasting that has convinced us Intel can be a
  very successful company even if we never hire
  another American James Bergeron, counsel to
  Congressman Buck McKeon, January 2007
• We are going to pass WIA Reauthorization this
  year, working with Chairman Charles Rangel, and
  in conjunction with TAA- Congressman George
  Miller March 2007

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The Regional Push Coming from

• Council on Competitiveness
• In our global economy place matters more than
  ever. Even as technology, capital, and knowledge
  diffuse internationally, the levers of national
  prosperity are, in fact, becoming more
  localized.
• As talented people and new ideas become the most
  critical drivers of economic growth, regional
  economic conditions have assumed greater
  importance.
• Regions that can attract talented residents and
  support the development of highly innovative
  firms will support great prosperity
• Regions that rely on low cost labor and basic
  extraction of natural resources will not.

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The Regional Push Coming from Council on
Competitiveness

• Basically, the Council on Competitiveness was one
  of the earliest drivers here- their thesis is
  that a regional effort to commercialize
  university research is a must!!
• They have launched RII Regional Innovation
  Initiative
• RII is the focal point of Council efforts to
  expand (their) message to more regions and reach
  more leaders in the private, public, university,
  labor and non-profit sectors.
• Three of their 5 objectives are all about
  regions.
• In my mind, RII is the father of WIRED.

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The Regional Push Coming from

• WIRED
• Through the WIRED model, regions integrate
  economic and workforce development activities and
  demonstrate that talent development can drive
  economic transformation in regional economies
  across the United States ETA website
• Like Robert Reich with One Stops, USDOL is not
  waiting for Congress, instead moving WIRED to
  such a critical mass that legislation catches up
  with the existing initiative

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The Regional Push Coming from WIRED

• Global competition, a 21st century economic
  reality, is typically seen as a national
  challenge, but the front lines of the battlefield
  are regional, where companies, workers,
  researchers, entrepreneurs and governments come
  together to create a competitive advantage.
• And those regions that are successful
  demonstrate the ability to network innovation
  assets- people, institutions, capital and
  infrastructure- to generate growth and prosperity
  in the regions economy.

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The Regional Push Coming from WIRED

• Where Congress finally comes out on this I dont
  know, but after this round three there could be
  as many as 39 WIRED regions across the US
• In New York, where we already have two WIRED
  regions of 5 total WIBs, seven WIB consortia
  competed before NY SWIB to get Governors
  blessing
• Other States- like Virginia- pre-decided to only
  send forward two regional proposals of regions
  chosen by the governor

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The Regional Push Coming from NCEE

• National Center on Education and the Economy
  NCEE

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The Regional Push Coming from NCEE

• NCEE staff combed the globe for 2 and a half
  years researching U.S. versus our global
  competitors
• Report says only radical reform of BOTH education
  and training can fix the situation we find
  ourselves in
• The core problem is that our education and
  training systems were built for another era. We
  can get where we must go only by changing the
  system itself.
• Today Indian engineers make 7500/ year against
  45,000 for an American engineer with the same
  qualifications. why would the worlds employers
  pay us more than they have to pay the Indians to
  do their work ?
• If we continue on our current course, and the
  number of nations outpacing us in the education
  race continues to grow at its current rate, the
  American standard of living will fall relative to
  those nations, rich and poor, that are doing a
  better job.

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The Regional Push Coming from NCEE

• 9 of the 10 Tough Choices recommendations are
  about education reform.
• 10 is about workforce development reform
• Create regional competitiveness authorities to
  make America competitive
• Government funded job training programs in the
  United States were mostly created to provide
  relatively unskilled people the skills needed to
  get a job- any job- as quickly as possible.

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The Regional Push Coming from NCEE

• So it is not surprising that government-funded
  job training has not, on the whole, been
  connected to the governments efforts to
  stimulate economic development. That being so,
  the jobs that people who go through the system
  get are all too often short term and dead end. It
  is now clear that the most effective strategies
  for economic development are technology based and
  regionally focused. It is also clear that the
  most effective way to provide a real future for
  people who need jobs is to provide training that
  is related to the economic future of the region
  those people live in, for jobs in growth
  industries.

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The Regional Push Coming from Governors

• NGA- State Sector Strategies Regional Solutions
  to Worker and Employer Needs
• The defining elements of state sector initiatives
  include a focus on customized solutions for a
  specific industry at a regional level
• Support the development of timely, accurate
  information to identify key industries, examine
  the state of regional economies
• (Note This is a pretty good paper outlining a
  number of regional sectoral initiatives various
  states have begun.)

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The Regional Push Coming from

• Workforce Strategy Center

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The Regional Push Coming fromWorkforce Strategy
Center

• Working Together Aligning State Systems and
  Policies for Individual and Regional Prosperity
  (December 2006)
• This is a good report that highlights how a
  number of States have been working to build a
  genuine workforce system
• Recommends that Incorporating Employer Demand
  and State Economic Priorities in Workforce
  Educational Planning requires
• Building workforce education into State economic
  development policy
• Linking workforce education to state and regional
  economic priorities
• Using incumbent worker and customized training
  programs strategically

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The Regional Push Coming fromWorkforce Strategy
Center

• Supporting Occupational and Workforce Development
  Programs of Economic Importance to State and
  Regions
• To avoid creating perverse incentives, states
  should convene their economic development,
  workforce development and community and technical
  college leaders to determine which academic and
  training programs are of greatest importance
  economically to the state (and specific regions)

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The Regional Push Coming from Workforce
Strategy Center

• Career Pathways Aligning Public Resources to
  Support Individual and Regional Economic
  Advancement in the Knowledge Economy, August
  2006
• Target industries and job titles that will
  support individual advancement and regional
  growth objectives, and conduct a gap analysis
• Analyze the current and projected supply and
  demand for labor in the region
• Expand the pathways process to other key
  sectors, regions, and populations
• Replicate the pathways process in other sectors
  of importance to the regional economy

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The Regional Push Coming from

• U.S. Chamber, WIA Reauthorization draft position
• An integrated and strategic regional economic
  development program is critical to the continued
  success and competitiveness of the American
  economy.   Thus, we encourage the governor to
  award grants for the development of regional
  economic development partnerships involving
  economic development organizations that primarily
  represent employers, industry leaders, community
  organizations, universities and community
  colleges, associations, and the public workforce
  system to provide solutions to the workforce
  challenges of the 21st century and to provide
  maximum access to for American workers to gain
  the education and new skills they need to be
  engaged in todays workforce.

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The Regional Push Coming from

• The factory owner
• My factory is in area A, my workers live in
  areas A, B, and C. My three WIBs have three
  different OJT policies

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Geography

• A Regional Overlay
• Fixed boundaries
• Flexible boundaries based on industry clusters

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A Few Models for Regional Workforce Development
Delivery

• Consolidation Models
• Indiana-
• This was the first of this last round (2005).
  Attempted move from 15 WIBs to 6 regions.
• Indianapolis was above the population limit and
  survived
• Key outcome of this move was sector-focused
  framework
• When skill shortages are determined to be
  statewide, a State Action Team is established
• Governor has asked for 70 seaside in recent
  submitted plan
• Virginia- Governor. Wants to go from 15 to 6
  regional WIBs

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Consolidation ModelsPluses/ Minuses

• Pluses
• Less Admin/ more people served same
• Easier to coordinate with regional economic
  development strategies
• Could capitalize on Council on Competitiveness
  commercialization of innovation strategy
• Minuses
• When California recently proposed moving from 50
  WIBs to 20, Mayor of Oakland testified hed put
  into Alameda County for summer jobs poor kids
  but not a big region
• California WIB Chairs testified they had been
  volunteering their time because it was their
  community but would not do so on a big regional
  board (California stayed at 50 WIBs then, 49
  WIBs today)

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Consolidation ModelsPluses/ Minuses

• Minuses (continued)
• Recent NYATEP county workforce funding survey
  revealed that many areas have very significant
  local, non- WIA funds. For example, Orange
  County, NY had 1.8 Mil in WIA formula funds but
  that was only 28 of their workforce funding.
  Risk that regionalization could lead to local
  disinvestment- negative funding synergy.
• Rigid boundaries often dont reflect real
  commutation patterns
• Community colleges with a local tax levy
  contribution will always keep their original
  boundaries

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A Few Models for Regional Workforce Development
Delivery

• NYSTAR
• New York Science and Technology Research model
• This is an overlay regional method built on top
  of existing higher education, economic
  development, and workforce development entities
• Like Council on Competitiveness, one of the main
  goals is to commercialize university innovation
  and research

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NYSTAR Overlay Model

• Pluses
• Leads to new partnerships
• New funds can be built off existing
  infrastructure with minimal leakage for Admin
• Easier to coordinate with regional economic
  development efforts
• Could capitalize on commercializing university
  research
• Minuses
• No guarantee efforts will continue or have a
  lasting effect
• Is this just too little change on the margins

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A Few Models for Regional Workforce Development
Delivery

• Joint Planning between Economic Development and
  Workforce Development
• Sept. 06 survey by New York State Association of
  Counties responded to by 56 of 57 Chief Elected
  Officials indicated that local workforce
  development entities tended to report to either
  Social Services Committee of County Legislature
  or Economic Development Committee
• Reporting frequency to elected officials varied
  widely
• In Counties with more than one Industrial
  Development Authority (IDA) 68 reported that the
  IDAs did not coordinate with each other
• One of the NYSTAR positives is that this type of
  workforce / economic development joint regional
  planning occurs

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Joint Planning between Economic Development and
Workforce Development

• Pluses
• Leads to new partnerships/ strengthens existing
  partnerships
• Increases understanding between economic
  development and workforce development about each
  others needs and constraints
• Lays groundwork for future regional opportunities
• Minuses
• Planning without funding might not lead to much
  change
• Is this too feeble for the magnitude of
  challenges NCEE pointed out

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A Few Models for Regional Workforce Development
Delivery

• WIRED
• Pluses
• Leads to new partnerships/ strengthens existing
  partnerships (even among WIBs)
• Is very flexible
• Geography is set by partners in the beginning
• Can capitalize on sectoral/ career ladder
  approach
• New funds can build off existing funds to require
  less Admin
• Can capitalize on commercializing university
  research
• Minuses
• Will they continue after seed money disappears
• Very labor intensive/ slow to start up
• Once set geographic boundaries are fixed

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A Few Models for Regional Workforce Development
Delivery

• MIRSA

Leaders and opinion shapers across the state have
convened to create 13 regions (33 separate
MiRSAs) to coordinate efforts addressing
immediate workforce needs This regional
strategy development reflects the active
participation of representatives of workforce
development, education, private sector,
community, economic development, and local
government organizations. 
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A Few Models for Regional Workforce Development
Delivery MIRSA

• At the center of this approach are regional
  partnerships led by Michigan Works! Agencies.
  They will provide the leadership to build and
  strengthen regional strategies that will benefit
  companies and workers alike, and pave theway to
  economic success
• MiRSAs are one tool for workforce development,
  but by no means the only one. They do not replace
  workforce boards, One-Stops, education and
  training providers, or other entities. Instead,
  they provide a conduit through which those
  organizations can partner and ensure that their
  services become more coherent, valuable, and
  accessible.
• Michigan Regional Skills Alliances (MiRSA) are
  part of a larger strategy to develop
  public/private partnerships that address
  workforce needs in specific regions and industry
  clusters. Regionalization is not a trend but a
  natural progression for government, at all
  levels, to follow the private sector in Alliances
  initiative was announced by governor Jennifer
  Granholm in her State of the State address in
  January 2004. It is one of many new initiatives
  embracing a regional philosophy

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Michigan Regional Skills Alliances

• Pluses
• Leads to new partnerships/ Strengthens existing
• Is demand side driven
• Capitalizes on sectoral/ career ladder approach
• Allows a county or WIB to participate in more
  than one regional effort based on industry
  cluster
• Allows different entities to be the lead
  (convener)
• Minuses
• Does this just layer on another level?
• Will they continue after seed money is gone
• Is this too little change for the large
  challenges

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A Few Models for Regional Workforce Development
Delivery

• Job Ready Pennsylvania
• Begun in 2005 with 91 Million State
  investment(see excellent rationale QA in
  Resources section)
• In order for WIB to participate, they have to
  move to high performance WIB, also gives access
  to 2.6 Million incentive funding
• Four WIBs to date have reorganized
• Strategy focuses on people already in the labor
  market, or looking for jobs, students in colleges
  and universities, and states employees and
  innovators of tomorrow currently in high school
• Very broad vision

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Job Ready Pennsylvania

• Uses sectoral approach / with career ladders/ 9
  clusters
• 5 Mil to organize industry partnerships/ 15M
  incumbent worker training by partnerships
• Focused on higher- level skill development
• Organized through regional industry partnerships,
  which are regional coalitions of employers, labor
  and outside experts who develop strategies to
  overcome shortages, hiring and training
  bottlenecks.
• High priority occupations are high wage/ high
  demand jobs.
• Changes success measures for community colleges
  new performance will be established for each
  community college. Typical performance measures
  such as meeting workforce development needs of
  State, graduation rate of degree and certificate
  programs, and job placement

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Job Ready Pennsylvania

• Pluses
• Bold and innovative
• State investment has continued to increase
• Multi faceted approach to building 21st Century
  workforce
• Upgrades existing workers
• Minuses
• Some big city issues with high demand targeting
  versus hospitality type training that is only job
  immigrants are likely to get with existing skill
  levels

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A Few Other Models for Regional Workforce
Development Delivery

• Illinois Critical Skills Shortages
• Shifted workforce under economic development
• 10 Economic Development regions with fixed
  boundaries
• Some WIBs are split across two separate regions
• All WIB Chairs in a region must participate or
  the region cannot be funded
• Other than WIB chairs, regional consortia must
  have representatives from economic development,
  workforce development, education, labor, business
  and industry
• Up to the WIB Chairs to determine best method for
  oversight
• Targeted occupations must pay self sufficient
  wages and provide benefits

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A Few Other Models for Regional Workforce
Development Delivery

• A Few Others
• Washington- High Skills/ High wages identifies
  industry clusters by region to guide funding
  priorities for its Industry Skills Panel
  initiative, which brings together employers,
  community colleges, WIBS, and other organizations
  to develop sector approaches by industry.
• Massachusetts- Bay State Works, established in
  2001 state funded the development of 11
  regional industry teams to work with local
  industry, workforce development, economic
  development, education, labor, and the community
  to develop skills gaps identified by regional
  industries.

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So What are your next steps

• Whats your position on Regional part of WIA
  Reauthorization? Fight it or support a model?
• What do you have to do to get ready for a
  regional initiative in your state?

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Regional Reading

• Executive Summary Tough Times or Tough Choices
  http//www.skillscommission.org/pdf/exec_sum/Tough
  Choices_EXECSUM.pdf
• NGA Center for Best Practices
• http//www.nga.org/portal/site/nga/menuitem.9123e8
  3a1f6786440ddcbeeb501010a0/?vgnextoidfcec912a4824
  e010VgnVCM1000001a01010aRCRD

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Regional Reading List

• Working Together Aligning State Systems and
  Policies for Individual and Regional Prosperity,
  December 06, Workforce Strategy
  Centerhttp//www.workforcestrategy.org/publicatio
  ns/WSC_workingtogether_12.1.06_3.pdf
• Career Pathways Aligning Public Resources to
  Support Individual and Regional Economic
  Advancement in the Knowledge Economy, August 06,
  Workforce Strategy Center http//www.workforcestra
  tegy.org/publications/WSC_pathways8.17.06.pdf

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Regional Reading List

• A really good booklet on regional asset mapping,
  authored by Randall Kemper, Council on
  Competitiveness, for ETA WIRED efforts, October
  2006, Asset Mapping Roadmap A Guide to Assessing
  Regional Development Resources
  www.doleta.gov/wired/files/Asset_MappingRoadmap.pd
  f
• Job Ready Pennsylvania Q A
• www.governor.state.pa.us/governor/cwp/view.as
  p?a1101q440205