Key Domestic Priorities in the Obama

Administration and Their Impact on

Workforce Development

Bob Knight

Arbor Workforce Institute

Workforce New York2009 Spring Conference

What Are the Intended and Unintended Results of a Policy?

1. American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009

• Youth and Summer Jobs

• Green Jobs and Healthcare Jobs

• Focus on Low-skill and Low-wage Workers

• Training, Training, Training

IS ARRA TRANSFORMATIVE?

What Do We Mean?• Sectoral • Regional• Expanding Training• Training Brokers• Public Influence• Key Players

2. Health Care Reform

• Worker Security/Mobility

• Wage Impacts• Impact on Health

Care Job Market• Added Pressure to

Eliminate Low Skill Jobs

3. Enhanced UI System

• Extended Benefits• Increased Benefits• Expanded Eligibility

Pool• Payroll Taxes• Job Sharing• Retrain/Upgrade

Benefits for Employed

• Impact on Incentive to Work

• Impact on Ability to Enter Training

• Better Job Matching?

4. Immigration Policy

• Responding to U.S. Skill Needs

• Need for Unskilled Workers

• Services in One-Stops

5. GREEN JOBS• $500 million competitive

WIA grants• Expectations for

Emphasis in “Regular” WIA Programs

• Strong Organizational Structures Tied to Many Social Issues

• Sometimes Critical of Current WIA System

6. Education Policy

• No Child Left Behind

• Higher Ed Act

• Student Loans, Pell Grants, ITAs

• Incumbent Worker

But Train For What?

• Healthcare Pipeline Full• Some DW’s Stand Best

Chance to Train for Good Paying Jobs

• Basic skills and soft skills issues to deal with

• Older workers• TANF disincentives

As far as the eye can see7. Setting Priorities With Deficits

How Support Lifelong Learning?

STABLE

KNOWLEDGE

MORPHS TO

CONTINUOUS

LEARNING

Other, Perhaps Related, Factors

• Environment and Energy

• Global Stability: War and Peace

• Veteran Services

• Unionization as an Antidote to Stagnate and Low Wages, Wage Disparities, Organizational Change and ???