Source:  PRESS RELEASE, 7/11/14

A bill that includes key elements of U.S. Senator Kay Hagan’s bipartisan AMERICA Works Act is headed to the President’s desk to be signed into law after the House overwhelmingly approved it this week. The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, which passed the Senate last month, funds a nationwide system of one-stop training centers, where out-of-work North Carolinians can find helpful job placement and job training services. Hagan's bill helps close the skills gap by requiring operators of one-stop job training centers to prioritize funding for training that will lead to nationally-recognized postsecondary credentials sought by employers in the area. These programs train North Carolinians for jobs available locally, in industries that range from aerospace to machining to textiles.

“I am extremely pleased that key elements of my bipartisan AMERICA Works Act are becoming law so that our job training programs are equipping workers with nationally-recognized, portable credentials that qualify them for the jobs that are available in their communities now,” said Senator Hagan. “I’ve heard from too many employers in industries across North Carolina who are struggling to find workers at a time when too many North Carolina families are struggling to make ends meet, and my AMERICA Works Act helps bridge the skills gap and ensure our job training programs are as effective as possible.”

The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act reauthorizes the primary federal law that supports workforce development and job training programs. The original Workforce Investment Act became law in 1998, but it has been overdue for reauthorization since 2003.

The AMERICA Works Act, which Hagan introduced with Republican Senator Dean Heller of Nevada and Democratic Senator Joe Donnelly of Indiana last year, does not add a dime to deficit. Hagan’s legislation is modeled after a program at North Carolina’s Forsyth Technical Community College, which was selected by the Manufacturing Institute to implement a job-training program that issues nationally recognized credentials, and is supported by the National Association of Manufacturers and many other associations, employers and educators.

Today, more than 300,000 North Carolinians remain out of work, yet 67 percent of U.S. manufacturers - one of North Carolina's most important industries - report a shortage of available qualified workers. Meanwhile, North Carolina furniture companies can't find enough workers with up-to-date skills to operate new, sophisticated machinery. Recent data show there are nearly 4.6 million job openings in the United States, of which 292,000 are in manufacturing.