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America's labor market presents a paradox. Although the unemployment rate is just 3.9%, there are more jobs open than people who can fill them. Nationwide, there are roughly 68 workers for every 100 open jobs. Many factors contribute to this workforce shortage, but one of the most significant is a growing skills gap -- millions of workers across the economy are unprepared for in-demand employment opportunities. In construction and other industries, employers are hurting, desperate for talent, and looking for innovative ways to attract people to open positions. Recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) show that the construction industry currently has 407,000 job openings. This shortage is expected to grow, with a projected need for 723,000 workers annually due to economic expansion, worker retirements, and the changing skill needs driven by energy transitions and technological advancements. Some 88% of construction firms report having a hard time finding workers to hire. To address this challenge, employers in construction and other industries are investing in workforce development -- working to ensure current and future workers have the skills needed to succeed in high-demand careers. But employers can't do it alone. And although federal funding is available to support skill development, it is not nearly enough. Just $28.2 billion out of a total $139.5 billion allocated annually for postsecondary education and training is spent on workforce development. This policy brief estimates current federal spending on postsecondary workforce education and training and compares these funding levels to funding for traditional academic programs. This brief explores how investment in workforce education today compares to in investment in recent decades. Finally, it offers examples of how four states are investing in workforce education and offers policy recommendations for stakeholders and policymakers to consider for the future. [This report was co-produced by Procore with support from the Construction Advocacy Fund.]

The National Technical Assistance Center on Transition: the Collaborative (NTACT:C) Collaborative Assessment Guide for Transition Planning (CAG) is intended to help students, family members, educators, vocational rehabilitation counselors, human services and health agency staff, and other partners develop a coordinated assessment approach for transition planning and service delivery. The set of resources which make up the CAG includes sections designed for students and families. It also includes a supplement to highlight the assessment requirements of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2004) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Rehab Act), as amended by title IV of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) as well as a supplement of Definitions referenced throughout. Finally, it includes a supplement of sample assessment tools. The assessment process for identifying post-school goals and relevant transition services for students and youth consists of six separate but interconnected processes: (1) Determining What to Assess; (2) Determining Stakeholders; (3) Selecting Appropriate Assessments; (4) Conducting Assessments; (5) Reviewing Assessment Results; and (6) Using Assessment Data.

The tables have turned on Michigan's public school boards and other school officials. As a result of changes to the state's labor law in 2023, school districts face the risk of losing some authority to determine who should be teaching in their classrooms. Teachers unions are empowered once again to demand districts treat teachers as if they are interchangeable widgets, basing all decisions related to promotion, placement and pay on seniority. School officials have not had to bargain over these issues for more than a decade but will suddenly find themselves facing these concerns again. The report reviewed the teachers union contracts in the 200 largest school districts in Michigan, which enroll about 70% of the public school students in the state. It reveals that some districts have automatic revival language in their contracts, which will make the changes to collective bargaining take immediate effect. It also assesses how thoroughly districts complied with the 2011 reforms and offers suggestions for school officials to deal with this new bargaining reality. It concludes by suggesting school districts review their existing contracts, familiarize themselves with previously prohibited terms, and negotiate firmly to preserve contract terms that prioritize improving teacher effectiveness and educational outcomes rather than union priorities such as reestablishing seniority-based rules.

"The State of Working Pennsylvania 2022" centered on the continued recovery from the COVID-19 recession, highlighting that Pennsylvania was at a policy crossroads: would political leaders embrace policies to strengthen the individual and collective worker power evident a year ago? Or would austerity and anti-worker policies after the 2022 elections undercut the possibility of a more sustained period of shared prosperity, a "New Deal for a New Economy?" In the past year, policymakers have not made a decisive choice between these two policy options. In part because the 2022 elections led to divided government. Executive authority at both the federal and state level remains in the hands of policymakers supportive of workers and labor unions, which makes possible small steps to enhance workers' power. But divided legislative branches rule out big changes in state and federal laws. On the upside, there have not yet been a reversal of the 2021-22 federal investments in climate, infrastructure, and innovation now sustaining a strong economy. On the downside, a federal or state minimum wage increase has not yet passed and there is zero chance of enacting a major pro-worker labor law reform (i.e., Protecting the Right to Organize, or PRO Act) federally before 2025. In this context of divided government and a President and Governor generally supportive of workers, a Pennsylvania job market favorable to workers has been sustained and stabilized, the latter in part because inflation--as expected--has quickly fallen to around 3%. Some readers may see the policy recommendations in this report as too ambitious and far-reaching. The authors disagree--they are only as forceful and creative as required to bring an end to nearly a half century of rising inequality. If readers agree that there is need to restore shared prosperity and share the authors' view that doing so would lay the foundation for social unity and a team effort to address climate change, then readers should embrace these policy recommendations as the best way to achieve these vital goals. [For the 2022 report, see ED624091.]

This brief examines the challenges youth face in the current job market and proposes recommendations for a national subsidized employment program that prioritizes equity and amplifies youth voices. The insights provided in this brief are informed by several listening sessions with members of the Communities Collaborating to Reconnect Youth Network (CCRY). CCRY is a national learning community that brings together leaders from different youth workforce systems who focus on reconnecting youth with education and career pathways. Drawing insights from the CCRY Network, this brief provides recommendations on how decisionmakers can center youth voice and equity in the policy development and program design for a scaled-up national youth subsidized employment program.

This compendium presents comprehensive information from the surveys for the full report "Linking Adult Education to Workforce Development in 2018-19: Early Implementation of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act at the Local Level. Evaluation Report. NCEE 2023-001r" (ED626771), and serves as a supplement, which provides in-depth findings on local implementation of a set of key practices under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). While the study synthesizes the data into sets of key findings, this volume provides information about the design, methods, and results of the national surveys of local adult education providers and state directors of adult education, which served as the main data sources for the implementation study. It also includes details on the existing data sources used to supplement the survey data. Chapter 1 provides information on the study methodology, including the samples and data sources used. Chapter 2 presents tables of results for each item in the surveys administered as part of the study. Chapter 3 provides the survey instruments used to collect the study data. [For the appendices to the full report, see ED626772.]

These appendices supplement the full report "Linking Adult Education to Workforce Development in 2018-19: Early Implementation of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act at the Local Level. Evaluation Report. NCEE 2023-001r" (ED626771). They provide additional information about the analyses conducted for the report and present select results from a national survey of local adult education providers. This includes information about the key constructs and estimation approaches used in the report (appendix A), statistics that support key findings in the report (appendix B), and comparisons of statistics reflecting adult education in 2001-02 and 2018-19 (appendix C). Information on how the survey sample and questionnaire were developed is available in the study's compendium report (ED626773). Supplemental tables for the survey are also available in that report.

For more than 70 years, the federal government has supported efforts to improve adult literacy and other basic skills. Many adults need help with basic skills like reading, writing, mathematics, and English proficiency to succeed in the American workforce. Congress has long provided resources to help individuals address these educational challenges, most recently through Title II of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) of 2014. But WIOA includes new requirements and incentives to strengthen the link between adult education and the overall workforce development system, to move adults into and along a career pathway. This report from a national evaluation of Title II examines the extent to which local adult education providers' instructional approaches and coordination with other agencies reflect this link and highlights the challenges providers experience in collecting related performance data. The report describes providers' reported experiences in program year 2018-19, the first year when the more than 1,600 providers receiving federal Title II funds were expected to operate under WIOA's rules and before the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted provider operations. [For the appendices to this report, see ED626772. For the supplemental compendium, see ED626773.]

An estimated 339,000 workers were employed in foodservice operations in the nation's elementary and secondary schools. While news stories often focus on so-called "lunch ladies," the school foodservice workforce encompasses employees ranging from front-line cafeteria workers to chefs and food preparation staff to administrators and managers. Such workers have a variety of skills and educational backgrounds and differ in their labor market outcomes. Federal funding and policies have affected the trajectory of the school foodservice workforce over time. While early school food programs in the United States were started locally, the introduction of federal funding in the 1930s led to an expansion and professionalization of the workforce, which was (and remains) comprised largely of women. Federal funding for the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) was made permanent in 1946 and, together with funding for the School Breakfast Program (SBP), now provides the bulk of school foodservice departments' budgets. This report details the history of the school foodservice labor force and policy shifts that have affected the workforce over time, including a recent trend toward outsourcing. It provides an overview of school foodservice positions, budgets, and operations, and the federal laws, policies, and funding streams applicable to the workforce, including labor laws and funding for workforce training. It also presents original estimates of the characteristics and labor market outcomes of public-sector school foodservice workers using American Community Survey (ACS) data from 2015 to 2019.

Employment is foundational to young people's successful transition into adulthood, yet many youth with lived experience in the foster care system struggle to obtain employment that provides a living wage. Youth with foster care experience typically do not have the same contacts and connections to employment opportunities as youth who have not been in foster care and cannot rely on the economic support of their family. In addition, transition age youth currently or formerly in foster care are more likely to be unemployed than their peers, and when employed, they typically earn less than their peers. Therefore, transition age youth with foster care experience need additional supports and resources to secure and maintain employment during their transition into adulthood. In this report, the authors highlight recent data on employment for youth with foster care experience. They identify ongoing challenges that youth with foster care experience face in participating in workforce readiness training, and finding and maintaining employment that pays a living wage. Additionally, they highlight a few existing supports for current and former foster youth. Finally, they provide policy recommendations and perspectives from youth to help their peers overcome these challenges and thrive in their careers. [Additional support for this report was provided by additional Maya Kamath, Nima Rahni, and Ted Lempert.]

The Newark Opportunity Youth Network (NOYN) contracted with the John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey to conduct a comprehensive analysis of the youth workforce development system within the state. The study documents how the youth workforce system developed in New Jersey since the federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) took effect, how it currently functions, and the financial and systemic realities that historically have been an impediment to a more collaborative approach. An unfortunate truth is that sometimes state legislatures design policies that, perhaps unintentionally, inhibit a community's ability to achieve collective impact through leveraging multiple resources. Compliance-driven funding models that limit a program's ability to connect with other programs to expand the impact, or disconnected public agencies that allocate funds and operate programs, to name a few, create obstacles to achieving collective impact. This research aims to provide stakeholders, including direct service providers and policymakers, with the tools to navigate these obstacles to better serve young people in New Jersey. The literature available around youth workforce development specifically in New Jersey is sparse, so to complement the literature review, researchers conducted in-depth interviews with local and national experts in youth workforce development. For those who advocate on behalf of the population of opportunity or alternative youth, the question demanding an answer is what can and should be done to improve the system of youth workforce development to better serve disconnected youth? This study begins to respond to that question. [This report was produced with the Newark Opportunity Youth Network (NOYN), with funding from the Aspen Institute Forum for Community Solutions.]

The crisis of teacher shortages across the United States accelerated to a five-alarm fire during the COVID-19 pandemic. Low pay and the gap between teacher pay and that of other similarly educated professionals is one of the primary factors contributing to this shortage. The escalating crisis impacts student learning and the professional status and economic security of teachers, almost three-quarters of whom are women. In this white paper, the National Education Association (NEA) argues the U.S. Department of Labor must use its regulatory authority to raise compensation standards in the teaching profession. The Department can do so by rescinding its antiquated regulation that lumps teachers in with doctors and lawyers as the only professionals who are categorically excluded from the protections of the Fair Labor Standards Act. By rescinding the teacher exclusion regulation, the Department of Labor can put a floor under teacher compensation nationwide and ensure that teacher salaries, like those of other professionals, meet the salary test for them to be exempt from overtime pay.

The purpose of this report is to examine the historical development and policy evolution of workforce intermediaries, a community-based model of education, job training and economic development practices that has become commonplace in local and regional labor markets. Workforce intermediaries broker the relationship between workers and employers, reducing uncertainty in the labor exchange process and managing transaction costs. They are diverse in their organizational sponsors, spanning non-profit worker centers and community colleges, for example, to chambers of commerce and joint union-employer partnerships. The report is based on a comprehensive online search of books, authoritative policy reports, and academic journals for writings on workforce intermediaries published between 1989 and 2021. It synthesizes the findings of about 170 publications. The features of modern intermediaries have been forged in successive versions of federal workforce legislation that emphasized "second-chance" services to disadvantaged persons and "low-skilled workers" in low-income communities. Scholars found that this focus on these constituencies tended to stigmatize participants, lessening their attractiveness to employers. This model has evolved to serve the educational, job training and job search needs of a broad range of participants. The report documents the emergence of high-performing workforce intermediaries that have adapted to changing conditions by becoming closely attuned to local community members and industry, both employers and unions, as partners in developing training curriculum, designing supportive services, and serving the precise needs of employers in targeted industry sectors. These advanced intermediaries, termed Workforce Intermediary Community and Industry Organizations in the report, have become central actors in the structure of local labor markets. They strive to integrate workforce development, educational and economic development perspectives and services. The report argues that further advancement in this organizational field requires greater sustainability among these organizations and government resources to establish what the Jewish Vocational Services calls a "sophisticated learning community" (Rubin 2019, 17) to share knowledge, identify best practices, and nurture continued innovation. The report includes references to 120 publications.

Many have called for greater alignment between education systems and the workforce, more equitable access to career-oriented experiences, and new policy approaches that will enable all individuals to successfully enter and thrive in the evolving labor market. Overall, education leaders at all levels must commit to new policy solutions that offer early exposure and access to career-oriented experiences for students and adults, encourage localized partnerships between education systems and industries, and address retention challenges in high-demand fields. This report looks to the future of the workforce, recent efforts to improve workforce development, and policy considerations.

The Pathways for Academic Career and Employment (PACE) program is established to provide funding to community colleges for the development of programs that will lead to gainful, quality, in-state employment for members of target populations by providing them with both effective academic and employment training to ensure gainful employment and customized support services. PACE funds are allocated pursuant to the community college state general aid distribution formula established in Iowa Code and are eligible to be carried forward to the next year. The figures noted in this report were obtained from each of Iowa's 15 community colleges. Each college has committed to building career pathway frameworks and structuring programs to ensure increased employment success of the identified target populations. [For the 2021 report, see ED617843.]

High-quality career and technical education (CTE) programs represent an effective way to provide young adults with an educational experience that prepares them for both college and career success. But not all CTE programs provide accessible pathways to a bounty of educational options without dead ends. To address the false dichotomy--college versus job preparation--in our nation's public education system, JFF offers practitioner-informed policy considerations, rooted in a commitment to equity, that federal and state officials can use as a guide to strengthen CTE college and career pathways for today's youth.

In the years immediately preceding the COVID-19 pandemic, policymakers, researchers, and philanthropists recognized the pressing need to build and strengthen the early care and education (ECE) workforce. Evidence documenting the relationship between early childhood educator professional preparation and children's outcomes spurred a growing movement to professionalize the ECE workforce, to ensure early educators have the skills and knowledge needed to best support children's early learning. With support from the Foundation for Child Development, in 2018 and 2019, the Urban Institute and Child Trends organized and facilitated convenings on the topic of strengthening the ECE workforce to best meet all young children's needs. Convening participants discussed the issue of how the ECE workforce can best support the increasingly diverse population of young children by elevating discussions about racial equity, providing the ECE workforce with professional development to best support the range of children's developmental needs, unpacking and defining the term diversity, and making significant public investments in the ECE workforce. This report summarizes key points and recommendations raised during the convening.

The Linking Learning to Careers (LLC) program offered high school students with disabilities an individualized and targeted approach to strategically plan for their futures. The Vermont Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR) designed LLC to build on its usual services for high school students to emphasize unpaid and paid work-based learning experiences (WBLEs) in integrated environments, college exploration and coursework opportunities at the Community College of Vermont, team-based guidance and support from DVR staff, dedicated support for assistive technology, and additional transportation funding. To support a rigorous evaluation, DVR relied on a randomized controlled trial design, recruiting 803 participants to participate. This report presents evidence on LLC's impacts up to two years after students enrolled in the program. The demonstration had impacts on services and education that were consistent with the LLC model and findings from the implementation evaluation. However, the program did not have consistent impacts on employment. [Mathematica prepared this report under contract to the Vermont Division of Vocational Rehabilitation under a grant from the U.S. Department of Education.]

Opportunity America received a grant from Lumina Foundation to conduct a national research study of community colleges' credit and noncredit occupational education programs and their relationships with employers. Opportunity America contracted with Wilder Research to manage data collection and analysis for the study. The purpose of this study was to learn more about the important role that community colleges have in training and upskilling the U.S. workforce and how these institutions work with employers to address local and regional workforce demands. The study aims to answer the following questions: (1) How extensive is the workforce education offered on community college campuses? (2) How extensive are the workforce programs offered by community college noncredit divisions? and (3) What share of colleges are adopting the innovations seen at pioneering two-year schools, including intensive employer partnerships, shorter job-focused programs, and stackable credentials? The goal of this study is to produce and share knowledge with researchers, administrators, state-level leaders, and policymakers to inform community college workforce education policies and programs. This report describes the study methods and includes a data book of the study results. The Appendix includes supplementary information, including the survey instrument and glossary. [The individual studies are indexed in ERIC.]

Ongoing research and evaluation that produce actionable, widely disseminated evidence are central to the continuous improvement of U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) programs. In addition, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014 (WIOA) requires DOL to conduct periodic, independent evaluations to inform the effective operation of WIOA programs and services. To support the development of DOL's research portfolio, this scan examines existing evidence on key topics related to WIOA programs and services. The scan focuses on four main topic areas, selected through a series of discussions with DOL's Chief Evaluation Office, Employment and Training Administration (ETA), and other DOL staff: (1) case management; (2) integrated service delivery; (3) training programs; and (4) youth services. Although the first three sections on service strategies focus on evidence from studies on adults or general populations, these services also relate to programs serving youth. However, because of the policy importance of identifying effective strategies for disconnected youth ages 16 to 24, the final section is devoted to research on youth, focusing on the many strategies offered by the WIOA Youth program. The scan describes strategies associated with each of the four topic areas, discusses existing evidence on the effectiveness of those strategies and evaluations currently under way, and summarizes the knowledge gaps in the existing evidence base. The scan prioritizes studies of strategies used in WIOA and by partner programs, but it also incorporates studies on related programs to increase the pool of studies from which to draw evidence. This research evidence scan is one of a pair of reports developed as part of DOL's WIOA Research Portfolio project. [For the companion report, "A Scan of Key Trends in the Labor Market and Workforce Development System. The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Research Portfolio," see ED614790.]

Enacted in 2014, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) was designed to increase collaboration among workforce systems at the federal, state, and local levels to integrate the array of programs and services available to job seekers and businesses through American Job Centers (AJCs). WIOA requires the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) to conduct periodic, independent evaluations to inform the effective operation of WIOA programs. To support the development of DOL's research portfolio, this scan describes recent and long-term economic and policy developments with relevance for the public workforce system. The scan focuses primarily on topics and trends related to the changing world of work and their implications for the public workforce system. In consultation with DOL's Chief Evaluation Office and Employment and Training Administration (ETA), along with other stakeholders, the following topics were selected: (1) broad economic trends and recent changes in employment and wages; (2) changes to industries and occupations due to technology, automation, and the rise of the gig economy; (3) growth in remote workforce system services; and (4) federal policy trends related to the public workforce system. The report concludes with a brief discussion of the implications of these topics for the public workforce system. This research evidence scan is one of a pair of reports developed as part of DOL's WIOA Research Portfolio project. [For the companion report, "A Research Evidence Scan of Key Strategies Related to WIOA. The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Research Portfolio," see ED614830.]

From February to April, New America conducted over 30 interviews with experts, care providers, and union representatives, focusing on three states. This report outlines key considerations for improving care worker job quality through organizing. We also include case studies on care worker organizing in California, Illinois, Washington, and the Cooperative Home Care Associates (CHCA) in New York City, selected based on the effectiveness of organizing strategies in each. [Funding for this report was provided by Pivotal Ventures.]

Indisputably, education in every society is pivotal to national development without which the society retrogresses. The world superpowers, the United States, China, Germany, UK, France, Canada, Japan etc. are able to attain substantial economic growths as a result of educational advancement through quality schools that result in the production of quality education at all levels. In these countries, education in both states and non-states institutions is well funded to meetup their innovative demands and overcome challenges. This is not the case in Nigeria where education budgets are just below 15% of the total budget of the country hence, the degradation of public schools and the over-reliance on non-state schools. Regardless of the expansive growth experienced in the sector (non-state institutions), another danger looms as these schools are following the footsteps of their counterparts (state owned schools) towards unethical activities that threaten realisation of the general goals of education. This paper focuses on the basic education levels of primary and secondary schools. It looks into the activities of non-state schools that are not in tandem with the purpose of teaching and learning. The paper examines cases from the two largest states of Nigeria, Kano and Lagos wherein it analyses the situations and arrive at some valuable conclusions.

Title II of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014 directs the federal government to conduct a national assessment of adult education, including activities to understand the extent to which adult education strategies positively affect learners. A systematic review of the research on the effectiveness of particular strategies in adult education is one way in which the U.S. Department of Education is fulfilling this need. This report contains the appendices to the snapshot systematic review report "Adult Education Strategies: Identifying and Building Evidence of Effectiveness. Study Snapshot. NCEE 2021-007" (ED612197). The following appendices are included: (1) Details of the Approach to Conducting the Adult Education Strategies Evidence Review; and (2) Details of Reviewed Studies. The first appendix contains the technical details of the approach followed for the systematic evidence review of research on the effectiveness of strategies in adult education. It includes more information about the organizing framework for the review and describes the process for defining its scope, identifying relevant literature, screening references and reviewing studies, and summarizing and reporting on findings. Details are provided so that someone familiar with systematic evidence reviews can understand the approach that was used and how it draws on the approach specified by the Institute of Education Sciences' What Works Clearinghouse (WWC). Some technical terms are explained throughout for readers less familiar with the WWC or research design. Exhibit A.1 presents an overview of the approach, followed by a more detailed and technical presentation of how the review was conducted. The second appendix contains information about the studies that were reviewed, which are those studies that made it through the screening process. References are included for each of the 54 studies that were reviewed, along with the WWC rating each study received and the reason for the rating. For the 22 studies that met WWC standards, summaries about the strategies tested and technical details of the study design are also provided. While some technical terms are defined in Exhibit B.1 this appendix was written for an audience with familiarity in research design.

Adult education's mission is a critical one. It seeks to provide the large and diverse population of adults who lack basic skills, a high school credential, or English language skills with the competencies they need to be productive workers, family members, and citizens. Federally funded adult education serves learners in three types of programs: adult basic education, adult secondary education, and English as a second language. Nearly 43 million U.S. adults lack the basic English literacy skills required to succeed in the workforce and achieve economic self-sufficiency. The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) is the key federal investment helping adults acquire these and other important skills, as well as to earn a high school equivalency credential. WIOA encourages adult education programs to use evidence-based strategies to improve services and participant success. This systematic research review suggests a need for more rigorous studies, as there is not yet much evidence to guide decision making around instructional and support strategies for adult learners. Title II of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014 directs the federal government to conduct a national assessment of adult education, including activities to understand the extent to which adult education strategies positively affect learners. A systematic review of the research on the effectiveness of particular strategies in adult education is one way in which the U.S. Department of Education is fulfilling this need. This snapshot reports on that systematic review. This is the first review of a broad set of strategies in adult education to apply the standards and procedures of the U.S. Department of Education's What Works Clearinghouse. It summarizes for policymakers and local providers the evidence base for many of the strategies authorized under Title II. It is designed to identify which strategies have evidence of effectiveness and where gaps appear in the evidence base. With this information, policymakers and practitioners can better understand the extent to which evidence supports particular strategies and which areas require additional studies. [For the appendices, see ED612199.]

In today's volatile economy, we can no longer afford to underinvest in America's opportunity youth. The costs of ignoring these young people, who are disconnected from education and out of work, are too high and growing. Building skills and gaining work experience are key to young people's upward mobility, but the pandemic has all but shut off opportunities for employment. In addition, funding for programs helping low-income, disconnected youth has declined precipitously since its peak in the late 1970s. To reverse this trend, we need big and bold solutions that create strong bridges between education and employment for young people. Federal policies must provide solutions that include postsecondary education and training that is of high quality and affordable. They must also offer paid work experiences and holistic supports to ensure that youth receive the services they need to access and persist in education, training, and work. To accomplish this, Jobs for the Future (JFF) urges the Biden Administration to take the following actions: (1) Increase Funding for Programs Serving Opportunity Youth; (2) Increase Program Quality and Expand Services for Opportunity Youth; (3) Expand Access to Work-Based Learning and Good Jobs; and (4) Align Youth Programs and Investments.

Business and industry leaders have an essential role to play in the design and delivery of high-quality Career Technical Education (CTE) programs. They bring unique perspectives on the foundational competencies and qualifications for entry-level work in their respective industries and can provide input into the design of programs of study, learning standards and classroom-based curriculum. The Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act (Perkins V) provides the perfect opportunity for leveraging ongoing sector strategies and scaling up engagement with business and industry leaders in CTE. Many states established statewide advisory councils with representatives from critical state industries to inform the design of their Perkins V plans. This report explores state strategies to systematically engage business and industry leaders in support of CTE. The information draws on research from Advance CTE's review of Perkins V state plans as well as key informant interviews with CTE leaders in Delaware, Georgia, Maryland, Ohio and South Carolina.

Work-based learning faces significant changes in delivery in the face of a global pandemic that has severely limited physical access to schools and businesses. These changes have forced school leaders and employers to acknowledge pre-existing inequities that perpetuate historical barriers and racial discrimination and keep marginalized learner populations from accessing high-quality work-based learning experiences. This resource from Advance CTE provides a five step framework to address equity gaps in work-based learning by building a statewide infrastructure that enables cross-agency collaboration and prioritizes relationship building, data and accountability, quality, and extending social and cultural capital. Innovative initiatives and programs in seven states and two cities are featured that address five action areas: (1) establish a statewide vision for equity in work-based learning; (2) enable intermediary organizations to equitably expand work-based learning; (3) use data to advance equity and program quality; (4) engage and support employers to offer high-quality and inclusive work-based learning experiences; and (5) scale successful programs using an equity lens. This resource was developed through JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s "New Skills ready network," a partnership of Advance CTE and Education Strategy Group.

According to a 2019 Pew Research Center survey, 67% of Americans support raising the federal minimum hourly wage from $7.25 to $15 per hour, with 41% strongly supporting the increase. Raising the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour has been the battle cry for many members of Congress, while others have opposed or expressed concern regarding, such a large increase. The federal minimum wage receives significant media focus, but many states and higher education institutions have established minimum wage rates that exceed or significantly exceed $7.25 per hour. To more clearly shape the perspective and understand the impact for higher education of a possible minimum wage increase, this brief includes a short history of federal minimum wage increases and the views of minimum wage increases through various lenses: (1) economic impact; (2) living wage; (3) the federal government; (4) state governments; and (5) higher education institutions.

When the COVID-19 pandemic plunged the economy back into recession in early 2020, it laid bare a fragile and profoundly inequitable labor market. The economic expansion that reigned from 2009 through 2019 brought historically low unemployment and inflation but failed to reduce income inequality or arrest the decline in the number of high-quality, well-paying jobs. Wages for all but the highest earners stagnated, volatility in household incomes increased, and the racial wealth gap and urban-rural economic divide widened, all fueled by the declining quality and security of jobs. By the close of the decade, four in ten Americans said they would struggle to cover an unanticipated expense of just $400. In the absence of a robust and coordinated recovery strategy focused on increasing the supply of good jobs, the same labor market pathologies that plagued the last recovery will re-emerge: the long-term unemployed will struggle to land jobs and many will give up; private sector job growth will be slow and uneven; many new jobs will be worse than those they replace; unemployment among Black and Latinx workers will remain elevated; and income and wealth gaps will widen. According to the Better Employment and Training Strategies Taskforce (BETS), the Biden-Harris administration has an historic opportunity to lay the foundation for an economy built on good jobs, one that ensures the benefits of economic growth are broadly and fairly shared. A recent national survey points to strong, bipartisan support for a robust governmental response to the recession that creates new jobs, prevents job loss, and improves job quality. The administration's Build Back Better plan includes investments and executive actions that will create and improve jobs for U.S. workers. The plan also makes clear that a Good Jobs Economy will require action on multiple fronts, from many federal agencies, and across all levels of government. This report provides a set of concrete recommendations to help guide an all-of-government jobs strategy, including three goals to guide a national jobs agenda, a suite of distinct but reinforcing strategies to achieve them, and a framework for coordinating activities across government.