Projecting Tomorrow's Workforce Needs

Dates and duration

October 14 – 24, 2008 (9 days)

Tuition

$2,880

Participants

This seminar is designed primarily for economists, statisticians, researchers, analysts, and managers working with labor force statistics. Participants should have an elementary knowledge of statistics and experience in analyzing labor or social data.

Objectives

To enhance the participants' ability to develop and analyze data for projecting future workforce needs by:

  • Fostering an understanding of the types and sources of workforce data available for developing statistics on future workforce needs
  • Presenting concepts in projecting workforce supply and demand, both by industry and by occupational classification
  • Introducing methodologies and tools for constructing inventories of skilled workers
  • Discussing the utility of projections data in planning, training, and implementing human resources development programs

Program content

This seminar focuses on the use of various sources of data for projecting future workforce needs, and on the analysis of projections for planning and developing human resources programs and policies.

The program begins by describing various sources of workforce information, their uses and adequacy, the methods of collecting and classifying the information, and the analysis and adjustment of data for use in workforce projections. A portion of this seminar will be devoted to methods and techniques of projecting workforce needs by industry and occupation. This will include a study of the techniques for developing workforce supply and demand projections for semiskilled, skilled, and high-level technical and professional categories of workers so that training needs may be determined.

The application of employment projections and supply of workforce also will be covered in the seminar, including the development of policies and programs for education and training, employment services, and employment opportunities.

Participants will have the opportunity to schedule individual appointments with staff of BLS and other organizations to discuss special problems and explore areas of special interest.

A summary of the program follows:

Projecting the labor force

  • Methodologies for analyzing and projecting the working population and labor force

Projecting workforce supply

  • Sources of information
  • Survey techniques
  • Methodologies for projection by occupation and industry

Projecting workforce demand

  • Sources of information
  • Approximations of future employment by economic activity
  • Estimations of employment by occupation
  • Estimations of training needs by occupation and skill level
  • Estimations of flows

Workforce training programs

  • Application of labor statistics for planning and administering education, training, and apprenticeship programs

Employment programs

  • Application of labor statistics for planning programs to provide employment opportunities and for administering employment services

Career guidance publications

  • Occupational Outlook Handbook
  • Occupational Outlook Quarterly
  • Career Guide to Industries

As a supplementary course, Training of Trainers is open to all participants of this seminar.

 

Last modified: November 20, 2007