NJ lawmaker wants evidence job training pays off

A bill awaiting final legislative approval in New Jersey’s Senate would help determine if the money spent to educate and train workers prepares them for the jobs that are really needed.

 

The legislation requires the State Employment and Training Commission to issue an annual report on the state’s workforce needs and the education programs to provide the skills that are in demand, according to Sen. Jeff Van Drew, D-Atlantic.

“With the advancements in technology, with the changes that are occurring, there’s a great deal that people have to know and have to be ready to deal with in the technological area, in basic language in computers, and all that they need to do to fulfill the requirements of those jobs,” he said.

The commission would encourage public and private organizations to use data compiled for the report to develop new workforce training programs, Van Drew said.

“If we’re not training them the right way, let’s tweak and reconfigure what we do and make sure we’d doing it the right way,” he said. “And the way that we’re going to do that is assimilating all this factual information that will come from this report.”