These Common Myths Are Fueling the Skills Gap Crisis

Baby boomers continue to exit the workforce in droves, leaving less experienced workers to fill their roles. Plus, workplace technology is advancing rapidly in every sector. My customers tell me that it can be challenging for employees to keep up through on-the-job training and even harder for those seeking employment or a career change to maintain relevant and up-to-date technological skills.

These challenges aren’t going away anytime soon, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t solutions. The resources required for upskilling the labor force and improving the talent shortage already exist — the Workforce Innovation and Opportunities Act (WIOA) funnels billions of dollars a year into state and local workforce development programs.

However, our customers in the WIOA space often share the same complaint: there is a systemic disconnect between these resources and the labor force, perpetuated by a few common myths. Dispelling these myths and shifting the narrative around workforce recruiting and training are critical to narrowing the skills gap.

An American Job Center Business Representative can help employers:

Short-term training can help you learn a specific skill such as coding or business. An internship can help you explore a career interest and network without a long-term commitment. An apprenticeship is a longer program (usually 4–6 years) that combines formal classroom education with paid, on-the-job training.

WIOA funding is available to help job seekers access the training they need, as well as other resources such as transportation and childcare assistance. I encourage workforce development professionals to set up workflows that can be used to automatically determine client eligibility for various grants and other assistance.

While apprenticeships used to be found primarily in the trades, they are now available for hundreds of additional high-skill, high-paying career paths, including advanced manufacturing, information technology, health care, hospitality, and more.

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