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Hagan on last night’s NBC report
Story Date: 8/22/2011
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Source: PRESS RELEASE, 8/19/11
U.S. Senator Kay R. Hagan today renewed calls for Congress to pass her AMERICA Works Act after last night’s report by NBC Nightly News from the Siemens Energy plant in Charlotte stressed the growing disparity between the skills held by job-seekers and the skills needed by employers. Siemens, which Hagan last visited in June, has 3,400 open jobs in the United States, including hundreds in Charlotte to make turbines and generators, but is having difficulty filling the positions with workers who posses the required math and mechanical aptitude skills. Hagan’s AMERICA Works Act cuts to the core of this issue by tying the needs of American industries to the curriculums of our educational institutions and job-training centers—matching the skills of workers with the needs of employers.
“Last night’s report by NBC from the Siemens Energy plant in Charlotte highlights why Congress needs to take up and pass my AMERICA Works Act as soon as possible,” said Hagan, a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee. “With more than 14 million Americans, including over 440,000 North Carolinians, out of work, it is unacceptable that too many job-training programs don’t make people job-ready. The AMERICA Works Act ensures workers can receive an industry-recognized credential that matches their skills and expertise with the needs of businesses RIGHT NOW. This is the type of commonsense, jobs-focused bill that should bring Democrats and Republicans together, and I look forward to working with my colleagues on advancing this important legislation.”
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are currently three million jobs openings in the United States. But as the NBC report details, a recent Manpower survey indicates that more than 50 percent of employers are having trouble filling their open jobs.
The AMERICA Works Act, which does not add a dime to the federal deficit, will encourage national industries, including construction, automotive and aerospace, to come together and agree upon the skill sets necessary for employees. When the industries have agreed upon standards, curriculums will be developed for training programs at community colleges that will offer industry-recognized credentials. When workers have earned an industry-recognized credential, they will be qualified for employment in any state. This credential does not require the cost or time commitment of a two-year degree program; however, the training will count toward a degree.
North Carolina is one of four states in the country selected by the Manufacturing Institute to implement a job-training program that issues nationally recognized credentials. Eight community colleges in North Carolina have the Manufacturing Skills Credential System, which is the model for the AMERICA Works Act. The NC community colleges with the program are: Alamance, Davidson, Forsyth, Guilford, Piedmont, Randolph, Rockingham and Surry.
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