Creating a more highly skilled workforce is the key to industry competitiveness. YET, Oregon and the nation continue to disinvest in workforce programs.
In Oregon, Workforce Investment Act resources have shrunk by more than 38% (unadjusted for inflation) since 2000. It’s time to stop the slide, and invest in our citizens and our future.
Workforce Investment Act funding come from federal discretionary resources, the 37% of the federal budget not considered “mandatory” under law. The discretionary spending portion of the budget consists of both military (58%) and non-military (42%) spending.
Non-military, discretionary funding, makes up roughly 16% of the total budget. Even if Congress eliminated all non-military discretionary programs, it would still not be able to close the approximately $1.8 trillion federal deficit. Workforce Training programs make up about 3% of non-military discretionary spending, or about 1% of the total federal budget.
For a better illustration of the impact of making these types of reductions check out Budget Cuts: Where Does Money Go? by Jonathan Karl, a segment that ran on ABC News.
A more detailed look at the federal budget can be found in the federal budget workbook provided by the National Skills Coalition.
What can you do to help?
- You can urge Congress to reauthorize the Workforce Investment Act of1998. A bill has been drafted, but is waiting for action.
- You can weigh in with Congressional leaders to support the need for workforce training resources.
- You can share your stories about the impact of workforce programs with us at contact@oregonwfpartnership.org
Help us stop the slide.