Should workforce development be on our radar?

12 Jul 2018


Minnesota is not positioned to fill many of the new jobs for skilled technical positions left open after the baby boomers retire. 

Minnesota’s baby boomers like me are retiring at a fast pace, leaving thousands of job opportunities.

Minnesota’s baby boomers like me are retiring at a fast pace, leaving thousands of job opportunities behind them. One estimate suggests that an average of 21,000 Minnesota job openings per month could be available between now and the year 2022.

So, what’s the problem?

The problem is that the state is not positioned to fill many of the new jobs for skilled technical positions, especially including manufacturing, construction, medical devices, health care, agriculture and energy.

At this time, about half of Minnesota high school graduates head off seeking a four-year college degree that may or may not be relevant — often not — to employers in need of workers to fill many of those anticipated 280,000 jobs.

If current trends continue, filling those jobs will not be possible without immediate, significant improvements in planning, job training and productivity.

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