2014 National Convening Skills Presenations Portland Plan | Page 72

THE PORTLAND PLAN
Economic Prosperity and Affordability

Element 7

Education and Job Skills Training
Align training and education to meet and expand access to
industry’s skill needs at all levels, foster individual competitiveness
and prioritize the job-readiness needs of Portland’s working poor
and chronically underemployed.

Guiding Policies
Expand access to training programs,
including short-term skill-building
P-41 programs, to build career pathways
that allow individuals to secure a
job or advance in a high-demand
industry or occupation.
Improve completion rates for
post-secondary education, industry
P-42 recognized certification and other
career or technical credentials.
Subsidize on-the-job training for
new workers to develop required
P-43 skills. Subsidize work experiences
for youth with an emphasis on
disconnected and disadvantaged
youth.
Move more education and training
opportunities into the workplace,
P-44 such as hands-on vocational training,
English language proficiency classes
and apprenticeships.

The region is faced with significant workforce challenges. While Portland
has notably attracted a growing share of workers with bachelors degrees
or higher (42 percent of city residents over age 25 in 2010), much of the
population also lacks skills to secure living-wage employment. We know that
over 100,000 people in our community are working full-time and not earning
enough to be self-sufficient, and over 50 percent of unemployed persons lack
basic skills in reading and/or math — a major barrier to obtaining living-wage
employment.
For example, nearly 15,000 youth (ages 16–24) in Multnomah County were
either among the working poor or idle poor (unemployed and not in school)
in 2006–08. Many unemployed older workers have also been affected by the
erosion of middle-income occupations, requiring new skills to find work at
their previous income levels.
Additionally, many jobs that once were attainable with just a high school
diploma now require some form of post-secondary education or training.
Expanding markets and new occupations, such as those in health care and
the clean tech industry, are also increasing demand for skills. In addition, the
retiring baby boomer population poses looming skills shortages across all
skill levels.
To ensure the local labor pool has the necessary skills to fill these jobs,
Portland must expand education and training programs. In the current
environment of high unemployment and steadily declining federal resources,
this presents a challenge.
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April 2012 | www.pdxplan.com