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ETA News Release: [07/08/2003]
Contact Name: Lorette Post
Phone Number: (202) 693-3984

Labor Department Co-Sponsors National Workforce Innovations 2003 Conference

The Power of E-3: Fueling America’s Economic Engine to Prepare America’s Workforce for the 21^st Century

WASHINGTON—Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao opened Workforce Innovations 2003, the nation’s premier workforce conference, Tues., July 8, 2003. The conference, held at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel, Washington, D.C., will run through July 10, 2003.

Co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration and the National Association of Workforce Boards, this unique forum provides an opportunity for workforce professionals, business and industry leaders, educators, and federal, state and local government officials to learn how to link employment, education, and economic development in local communities throughout the nation to prepare America’s workforce for the 21^st Century.

“The publicly-funded Workforce Development System is one of America’s best kept secrets and we don’t want it to stay that way. It is a $15 billion annual investment by American taxpayers to help unemployed and displaced workers access skills training so these workers can find new job opportunities,” said Chao. “The one-stop centers can be especially useful in helping workers of all backgrounds gain the support and skills training to access high-growth jobs in the 21^st Century. As the President has said, one worker out of work is one too many. The professionals in workforce investment system have the significant challenge of ensuring that workers receive relevant, job-related, demand-driven training and I know they are up to it!”

The Bush Administration has invested $15 billion in providing employment and training services for America’s workers through more than 1,900 full-service One-Stop Career Centers now in operation across the country, with an additional 1,600 affiliated offices. These centers serve approximately 19 million people every year. The One-Stop delivery service system, authorized under the Workforce Investment Act, provides a more efficient and effective channel through which job seekers can be matched with opportunities for employment and career advancement.

“America’s ability to be competitive in today’s global economy depends on the competitiveness of our workforce,” said Employment and Training Assistant Secretary Emily Stover DeRocco. “The demand-driven public workforce system has a great deal to offer by ensuring that job seekers are equipped with the skills they need to be successful, as well as helping employers find the skilled workers they need to be productive and competitive.”

For more information about Workforce Innovations 2003, the website address is www.workforceinnovations.org.