An Industry Week article spotlights Toyota's Georgetown, KY, plant's efforts to fill the facilities projected need for tool and die makers. Here's an excerpt:

In 2013, Wally Palen realized he had a “people problem.” Tool and die makers at Toyota’s Georgetown, Kentucky, plant, where he is assistant general manager, were disproportionately reaching retirement age, and replacements were hard to come by.

Looking ahead, the workload was only getting heavier. With a cascade of new vehicle models at Toyota—from the recently introduced to the forthcoming—the need for new dies is currently the highest in 25 years, and projected to grow even more. Yet 36% percent of the Toyota Kentucky’s 200 tool and die makers are already at or near retirement age. The percentage goes up to 43% by 2021.

So the affable Ohio State University graduate—who oversees Toyota’s die manufacturing operation and 19 stamping lines—set about coming up with a contingency plan. He estimates he’ll need 52 more toolmakers by 2021, but will only be able to find 15 through traditional HR.

The rest? He’s angling for 32 of them to come through a new apprentice program he got going with “brute force” (his words), and five from retraining promising production team members.

Read the rest of the story here!

Markees Drain, 22, realized that baby boomers will eventually help land him a good-paying job.

To make that happen, Drain is counting on a new effort through the Youth Career Center — a new jobs initiative aimed at Detroit youths ages 16-24 who aren’t in school or working.

The initiative, announced Thursday by Mayor Mike Duggan during a news conference at the Youth Career Center in southwest Detroit, hopes to reach 25,000 youths. The Youth Career Center has combined forces with the Detroit Employment Solutions Corp. and SER Metro Detroit for Detroit Works.

“I’ve been in the program for about two weeks,’’ said Drain. “The program is supposed to set me up to be ready to be an apprentice. I was a college student. So far, it brought my attention to learning more about trades. I really didn’t know much about painting and electrical work and carpentry.

Read the full article here!

The National Skills Coalition (NSC) has created a series of toolkits to help states develop a range of policies designed to bridge their skills gap, help people train for in-demand occupations, and help businesses find the skilled workers they need to succeed.

The toolkits are part of NSC’s skills equity agenda – an effort to advance state policies that expand access to middle-skill training through policies on job-driven financial aid, SNAP E&T, stackable credentials, alignment, integrated education and training, and TANF E&T.

Read more and download the toolkits on NSC's Skills Blog.

An Oct. 5, 2016, article published by Automation Alley offers "some practical best practices for accomplishing this vital goal of refreshing the skills and knowledge base of your organization." Included are tips for engaging and developing Millenials and Gen-Xers, as well as recommendations to "rethink how you bring new employees up to speed in your organization."

The aticle points out that 90 percent of Millenials will leave a job in less than three years and credits this to their "intent on tackling new challenges." This trait, the article posits, is "good news for manufacturers, who must continually innovate."

Read the entire article at Automation Alley's website.

Forbes recently published an article titled "Why We Desperately Need To Bring Back Vocational Training In Schools".

The article concludes, among other things, that "The demise of vocational education at the high school level has bred a skills shortage in manufacturing today, and with it a wealth of career opportunities for both under-employed college grads and high school students looking for direct pathways to interesting, lucrative careers. Many of the jobs in manufacturing are attainable through apprenticeships, on-the-job training, and vocational programs offered at community colleges."

Read the complete article here.

June 2, 2016 -- Today the Department of Labor announced the award of $10.4 million in ApprenticeshipUSA State Accelerator Grants to help expand and diversify registered apprenticeship programs nationwide. These grants are part of ApprenticeshipUSA, the department’s coordinated effort with industry and education leaders, nonprofits, and local governments to highlight the benefits of apprenticeship and expand the use of this time-tested, earn-while-you-learn model.  Awards were made to 51 states and territories and the District of Columbia. 

These accelerator grants will help states develop a strategic plan and build partnerships for apprenticeship expansion and diversification with State education, workforce and economic development systems.  States will also receive support to develop strategic plans for encouraging businesses to launch Registered Apprenticeship programs in high-demand industries including advanced manufacturing, healthcare, IT, construction, and transportation.

These investments are part of a historic bipartisan Congressional effort to appropriate funds specifically for apprenticeship for the first time, and align with President Obama’s bold challenge to double and diversify the number of apprenticeships by 2019. 

Each Accelerator grant of $200,000 will allow states, including Michigan, to develop a strategic plan and build partnerships for apprenticeship expansion and diversification with state education, workforce and economic development systems.

In addition, in the coming weeks, the department will announce the availability of an additional $50 million in State Expansion Grants for those looking to expand their capacity to collaborate with employers and start new apprenticeship programs across diverse industries and communities.

Both of these ApprenticeshipUSA State Grants are designed to help states plan and implement strategic state strategies to expand Registered Apprenticeship across the country.  Grantees will utilize the grants to help state governments integrate apprenticeship into their education and workforce systems; engage industry and other partners at scale to expand apprenticeship to new sectors and new populations; support state capacity to conduct outreach and work with employers to start new programs; provide support to promote greater inclusion and diversity in apprenticeship, and implement state innovations, incentives and system reforms. By investing in state strategies for growing Registered Apprenticeship opportunities, these funds will help strengthen the foundation for the rapid and sustained expansion of quality apprenticeship nationwide.

For more information on this funding announcement please see the links below:

• Press Release: www.doleta.gov/oa/pdf/state_grants_press_release.pdf
• ApprenticeshipUSA: www.dol.gov/apprenticeship