Proposed: A Competition to Improve Workforce Training

In the US, education and training programs have long been key in helping people get better jobs and achieve higher living standards. With the earnings divide between skilled and unskilled workers at a historic high, the imperative for increasing skill levels is great. Training programs offer opportunities for low-income individuals to qualify for jobs that enable them to enter the middle class and for displaced workers to regain a significant portion of their lost earnings. Improving workforce skills also enhances the nation's competitiveness and fosters economic growth. Evidence show; that many career and technical training programs lead to high-paying jobs and stable careers. In fact, young adults with a two-year degree in a technical or industrial field or a certificate requiring at least a year's worth of credits in similar high-return fields often increase their earnings by 33% or more, to levels comparable to those of workers with more traditional four-year degrees. In contrast, students with two-year degrees in low-return fields seldom enhance their earnings at all.