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A CNBC story released this morning stated that moderating inflation has been helpful to American consumers and their buying power. This is the first time in two years that consumers are actually making gains. However, while a very high percentage of households are financially secure, 57% of households still live paycheck to paycheck, a drop from 61% a month earlier. The story goes on to talk about how most families are “under-saved” and have little set aside for emergencies. In forty-two years of working, I think I’ve read stories like this at least a hundred times.
Today, the U.S. unemployment rate (as of May 2023) stands at 3.7% with 6.1 million Americans out of work. At the end of April, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the number of job openings across the country stood at 10.1 million. Translated that means we could put everyone presently unemployed to work and still have 4 million job vacancies across the country. Monster, the job seekers website, reports that another 5.4 million workers describe themselves as under-employed, and I have read studies that suggest the number of under-employed is much higher than that. So, what’s the solution?
The job training world has been slow to evolve and that needs to change. Working adults make up 97% of our current workforce and they need a greater number of training options that play out over weeks, not months and months or years. We applaud those that are leading this trend with “stackable credentials” or full time, five-day-per-week skills training options. Our Delaware workforce needs a greater number of compressed training options, and that would benefit everyone.
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