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On January 3, 2017 the
Top 5 Greater Lowell Employers with job openings are:
- Kronos
- Raytheon
- UMass Lowell
- United Technologies
- EMD
The
Top 5 Job Titles are:
- Software Engineer
- Customer Service Rep.
- Senior Software Engineer
- Administrative Assistant
- Registered Nurse
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Labor Force, Employment and Unemployment
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The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
released the latest Labor Force, Employment and Unemployment numbers for
November 2016
. In the Greater Lowell Area
150,003
workers were in the labor force, of which
145,993
were employed and 4,010
were unemployed. The unemployment rate was 2.7
%
, down 0.8% from the previous month
.
Statewide, in November, the largest over-the-month job gains occurred in the Financial Activities; Professional, Scientific and Business Services and Construction sectors.
Nationally, total non-farm payroll employment rose by 178,000 in November. The unemployment rate was little changed at 4.6%, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Employment in Professional & Business Services and Health Care continued to trend up.
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Nine states had significant over-the-year unemployment rate decreases in November 2016. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, t
he largest decrease was in Massachusetts, where the unemployment rate went from 4.9 percent in November 2015 to 2.9 percent in November 2016, a change of -2.0 percentage points. For more information and an interactive map view the full
report.
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January 3, 2017
Total Job Postings:
110,017 Greater Lowell Job Postings: 3,770 Visit MASS JobQuest |
In Massachusetts, many jobs can be accessed through registered apprenticeship programs. No longer just in the traditional trades, t
here are over 850 jobs in a wide range of industries that can be learned through apprenticeship training. For more information visit the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development, Division of Apprentice Standards website.
The GLWDB, in partnership with the Northeast Advanced Manufacturing Consortium (NAMC), will assist in recruiting up to 64 apprenticeship trainees for positions in manufacturing including industrial technician, machine operator, assembler and machine set-up operator at 15 advanced manufacturing employers.
NAMC will receive a portion of a $2.9 million grant to fund the Massachusetts Apprenticeship Initiative (MAI) through the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development, Department of Career Services.
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To learn more about WIOA please utilize the following resources:
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We are pleased to announce that Nancy McGovern joined the WDB as Senior Program Manager. Nancy's extensive experience with legislative policy, procedures and regulations will be a great asset as we continue with WIOA implementation.
We are also pleased to announce that Cathy Sturtevant has been appointed to the Position of Youth Program Manager. Cathy has extensive experience working with youth coming from our Connecting Activities programming.
With our staff vacancies filled we are looking forward to a successful and busy 2017!
GLWDB Engages UMass Labor Education Program
The UML Labor Education Program has offered a research assistant to the GLWDB. The RA will provide quantitative and qualitative research on the successes and challenges of the Northeast Advanced Manufacturing Consortium. A final report will be used for marketing and recruitment efforts.
GLWDB Quarterly Meeting
On December 9, 2016 the GLWDB held its quarterly meeting
. Highlights included a special presentation by the Career Center of Lowell's Customer-Centered Design Challenge Team. With the assistance of community partners, the Lowell team designed new ways to orient customers to the career center and improve services.
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Career Center of Lowell Customer-Centered Design Challenge Team.
Front (l-r): Stacey Thompson, Nancy Gagnon, Shannon Norton Calles. Rear (l-r): Cathy Byrnes, Amy Veillette, Bob McIntosh
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Other highlights included:
*Election of Officers
*Partnership MOUs
*Northeast Advanced Manufacturing Consortium update
*OSCC Procurement
*Career Center Youth and Adult Program Performance
Northeast Advanced Manufacturing Consortium (NAMC)
NAMC has expanded the number of training partners to now include Bunker Hill Community College, Somerville and Medford Vocational High Schools. The next round of advanced manufacturing training, in conjunction with these new partners, will begin on January 23rd, 2017. Twelve
Machining Trainees and
13 Electronic Technician Trainees will be preparing for jobs in an industry that is looking to fill high-paying, skilled positions. To date 140 individuals have been trained under the consortium.
NAMC was recently awarded additional funding from an apprenticeship expansion grant to train 20 apprentices in advanced manufacturing occupations.
Save the Date for the 2017 Connecting Activities Youth Job Fair
The Connecting Activities Youth Job Fair will be held on Thursday, April 27, 2017 at 3:00 p.m. in the Lowell High School Cafeteria. Last year,
458
students and 64 employers participated from the hospitality, food service, banking, retail and health care sectors. More than 100 youth were hired.
One-Stop Career Center Competitive Selection Process
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) requires that Local Boards, in agreement with the Chief Elected Official, select One-Stop Career Center Operators through a competitive process to be conducted every four years. Operator/Service Providers selected through the competitive process must be in place and operating the Local One-Stop Career Center by July 1, 2017. Greater Lowell is in the final phases of the selection process and will make an official announcement in the near future.
WIOA Partner Convening
WIOA emphasizes full and effective partnerships between Local Boards and One-Stop Career Center Required Partners including DTA, DUA, MRC and others (as locally defined) to improve job and career options through collaboration and integrated service design. In accordance with WIOA Regulations, local umbrella MOUs will be developed and executed between the Local Board and Partners relating to the operation of the one-stop service delivery system. At the State-wide WIOA convening meeting in December we had an opportunity to meet with our partners and begin discussions on next steps. Local partner meetings will commence in February.
Regional Planning
Regional Planning, an initiative of the Massachusetts Workforce Skills Cabinet, has been designed to bring together Education, Workforce and Economic Development Partners to identify high priority regional career pathways and develop solutions to meet the needs of job seekers and employers. For the purposes of Regional Planning, seven "planning areas" consisting of existing Workforce Regions have been identified. Greater Lowell, as part of the Northeast Region, will work with our partner workforce boards from the North Shore and Merrimack Valley on this initiative.
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GLWDB & Career C
enter of Lowell Events
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January 18, 2017 -
Verizon Hiring Event
at Career Center of Lowell, 1:00 p.m.,
107 Merrimack Street,
Lowell, MA 01852
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January 26, 2017 - GLWDB Workforce Issues Committee Meeting
, 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m., 107 Merrimack Street, 3rd Floor, Lowell, MA, 01852
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