National Organizations Announce Partnership to Help Employers Shape National Skills Strategy

With Local Skills Shortages Stalling Economic Recovery, Groups Announce Commitment to Action at Clinton Global Initiative America Meeting

Joyce Foundation first Philanthropic Partner to Invest in Effort

Chicago, IL – This week, four national organizations will announce Business Leaders United for Workforce Partnerships, an initiative to bring diverse business leaders together to help shape a national skills strategy that can address structural skill shortages that are putting the brakes on economic recovery and job creation.

The announcement was made during CGI America, a meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) in Chicago June 29-30, where President Clinton is responding to challenges in the United States by convening business, government, and civic leaders to focus on economic recovery and job growth. The meeting will generate Commitments to Action - new, specific, and measurable plans to address job creation challenges in the US.

Business Leaders United, a CGI Commitment to Action, is spearheaded by Skills for America’s Future, National Fund for Workforce Solutions, National Skills Coalition, and Corporate Voices for Working Families. The Joyce Foundation has announced that it will be the first member of the philanthropic community to invest in the Business Leaders United Commitment to Action.

“Job creation and job training strategies must go hand in hand,” said Joyce Foundation President Ellen S. Alberding. “That won’t happen unless business leaders are at the table shaping workforce policy. Business Leaders United has identified concrete measurable goals to help ensure public workforce training investments are targeted at the jobs that will be part of our post-recession economy.”

Industry partnerships are a specific workforce training model led by local employers in collaboration with colleges, community organizations, public workforce boards, and unions. This model has compiled a track record of success. Business Leaders United will:

• Expand the number of these partnerships by more than 30 percent across 50 states.
• Facilitate conversations between local business leaders and federal policymakers about how private, philanthropic, and public dollars can be leveraged to replicate and sustain these partnerships nationally.

Supporting industry partnerships through public policy will help address the skill shortages that are putting the brakes on economic recovery.

"In order to better realize long-term economic recovery, we need to close the gap between untapped talent and entry level workforce needs,” said Patrick Flavin, AVP Director of Workforce Initiatives for The TJX Companies Inc. and a member of the Corporate Voices for Working Families network.

“Investing in our workforce is a ‘win’ for our company and a ‘win’ for our community,” said Pete Strange, CEO of Messer Construction and a member of the National Fund for Workforce Solutions network. “The future competitiveness of our company depends on our ability to attract and develop talent. And the future vitality of our community depends on our collective ability to grow the skills of our workforce so people can obtain gainful employment.”

Employer partners from the national organizations spearheading Business Leaders United are applauding the announcement of the Commitment to Action.

“We need to make sure America has a 21st century workforce that is equipped with the training and capabilities necessary to be successful, to get ahead, and to drive a competitive economy in the challenges of a global marketplace,” said Eva Sage-Gavin, executive vice president of Global Human Resources and Corporate Affairs for Gap Inc. and an Advisory Board Member of Skills for America’s Future, which seeks to promote partnerships between community colleges and businesses. “Business Leaders United will bring essential voices to the table to ensure we can grow the skilled workforce of the future today.”

“Those of us who work in industry partnerships understand the power they generate, particularly for small and mid-sized employers, to address local skill needs,” said Michael Mandina of Optimax Systems Inc. in Ontario, New York and a member of National Skills Coalition’s employer network. “We need to have a national policy conversation about how to better support this proven strategy and close local skill gaps. I look forward to working with Business Leaders United to shape that conversation.”