March 10, 2011
Lieutenant Gov: More emphasis on worker training
By Mary E. Arata, marata@nashobapub.com
DEVENS — Even as the state’s unemployment rate hovers at about 9 percent, Lt. Gov. Tim Murray said Wednesday that work-force needs and concerns “may not be what the media and others may lead us to believe.”
Employers need trained employees, and it’s challenging to retain them in the face of higher costs of living and wintry weather, Murray told a crowd of more than 350 people at the eighth annual Commonwealth Workforce Coalition Conference, held at the Devens Common Center.
The event, subtitled “Sharing Skills, Building Connections,” also included a series of workshops on career-related topics, including networking, career coaching and social media.
Murray said the conference dovetailed nicely with the Patrick administration’s November 2007 launch of its Interagency Council on Housing and Homelessness, which has a goal of ending homelessness in the commonwealth by 2013.
“If we’re going to better serve our clients, we need to make them fully aware of opportunities to partner,” Murray said.
Murray said recent statistics that indicate a slow economic recovery is “little solace to those who are not working or underemployed.”
He praised the CWC for sparking ideas to fine-tune the Bay State work force because “now, more than ever, it’s imperative to provide the right assistance and training.”
Part of Wednesday’s conference was to track employment trends, Murray said, “not only in the next year, but five to 10 years down the road, and what collectively are we doing to prepare people?”
He said work-force development is receiving a renewed focus in the administration’s second term.
“What has always allowed us to stay ahead and competitive is that we’ve always had a well-educated work force,” Murray said.
The lieutenant governor said requests for proposals are now being accepted from community colleges and other venues, for example, to house adult learning and career centers to help affected workers “sharpen their skills and become attractive job candidates in this very competitive market.”
The administration also endorses arming workers with an arsenal of STEM skills — science, technology, engineering and math. Murray said a STEM-centric curriculum will help in job creation in the fields of education, medicine, biotech and life sciences, manufacturing, video gaming and robotics, to name a few.
“We need to try to make sure that we’re thinking and preparing for those growth industries, from the entry level to those that require significant and advanced degrees,” Murray said.
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