The Blog

Eleni Papadakis, Executive Director, Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board

02/10/10

The Governor should be applauded for her decision to increase spending for the state’s Worker Retraining Program in a proposed budget that otherwise delivers some tough decisions. This program is critical during times of economic distress, helping workers who lose their jobs retool and prepare for new career fields.

And as the economy improves and changes, we will need to consider how to make training and education available to all workers long before layoff notices are a possibility. This is especially essential for those adult workers who have not gone beyond high school and are unable to find and hold a family-wage job. To put this low-skill, low-wage population in perspective, this number of Washington workers is roughly equal in size to the next 10 high school graduating classes combined.

The Workforce Board’s coalition of business, labor and government has outlined a state workforce development strategy, High Skills, High Wages, that addresses these working adults, many of whom are living paycheck to paycheck and cannot afford to head back to school while juggling jobs and families.

For example, the Workplace-Based Digital Learning initiative is seeking ways to help low-wage workers get the skills they need at the workplace. Progress has been slowed by the economic crisis but the initiative received a boost when U.S. Sen. Patty Murray helped secure $850,000 in federal funds to support some pilot, employer-based projects.

Another example includes the Lifelong Learning Accounts program, which enables employers to establish jointly funded educational savings accounts with their employees to help them save, and move more quickly, into part-time classes that fit their work schedule. We are currently looking for ways, including private foundation support, to expand this program statewide.

As our economy emerges from this horrible recession, Washington's competitive advantage may very well rest on how well Washington workers are able to realize their full potential. This means perfecting creative ways for low-wage workers to continue working while getting the education and training they need to improve their lives and fuel a stronger and healthier economy.

Eleni Papadakis is executive director of the Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board, a state agency dedicated to helping workers get the education and training needed to obtain family-wage jobs.