Minnesota WorkForce Centers

issue 17 - February 2008	kathy.sweeney@state.mn.us

Key Findings (continued)

Among Key Findings in central Minnesota:

• In central Minnesota, 53 percent of manufacturing survey respondents indicated a moderate or severe shortage of workers. However, workforce shortages--now and predicted three years into the future--are most apparent in southwest and northwest Minnesota. Specifically, 63 percent of southwest Minnesota respondents said they were experiencing a moderate or serious workforce shortage; northwest Minnesota reported 62 percent.
• Workforce shortages were highest for skilled production and scientist and engineering positions; lowest in low-skilled production, and management and administration.
• Collaboration with education is viewed as important in developing high-performing workers, yet when compared with national manufacturing respondents surveyed by the National Association of Manufacturers, Minnesota manufacturers collaborated far less on educational activities. Although untapped opportunities for successful manufacturing/educational collaboration remain throughout the state, only 38 percent of central respondents indicated no collaboration. To encourage and recruit newer talent into the manufacturing industry, respondents in this region were more likely to have conducted youth apprenticeship programs.
• Regional differences in practices used to recruit and retain employees exist. Central Minnesota respondents were more likely to use public-sector placement services to recruit employees. They also rated these services more highly for usefulness than survey respondents in other regions.
• When it comes to training, central Minnesota respondents were more receptive to certifications in metal-forming skills and work readiness. This could present an opportunity for educational institutions to conduct a needs assessment for such programs in central Minnesota. Another response: The National Work Readiness Credential is being piloted at the St. Cloud WorkForce Center. This online assessment tool is the first national standards-based assessment for entry-level workers that provides a universal, portable, national standard for work readiness. The credential affirms that individual job seekers have demonstrated the knowledge and skills needed for successful performance as entry-level workers across industries.

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Among Key Findings in northeast Minnesota:

• In northeast Minnesota, 44 percent of manufacturing survey respondents indicated a moderate or severe shortage of workers. However, workforce shortages--now and predicted three years into the future--are most apparent in southwest and northwest Minnesota. Specifically, 63 percent of southwest Minnesota respondents said they were experiencing a moderate or serious workforce shortage; northwest Minnesota reported 62 percent.
• Workforce shortages were highest for skilled production and scientist and engineering positions; lowest in low-skilled production, and management and administration.
• Collaboration with education is viewed as important in developing high-performing workers, yet when compared with national manufacturing respondents surveyed by the National Association of Manufacturers, Minnesota manufacturers collaborated far less on educational activities. Untapped opportunities for successful manufacturing/educational collaboration remain throughout the state, particularly in northeast Minnesota where 54 percent of respondents indicated no collaboration.
• Regional differences in practices used to recruit and retain employees exist. Northeast Minnesota respondents were much more likely to increase wages to retain their top talent than respondents in other regions.
• Investing 3 percent of payroll in the training budget is considered a best-practice of small- and medium-sized manufacturers, according to RSM McGladrey and The Manufacturing Institute. However, northeast Minnesota survey respondents were more likely to maintain their training budgets at the same level over a three-year period than their regional counterparts. They were less likely to need English language fluency or English as a Second Language training than metro area survey respondents, but indicated a greater need for technical skills.

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Among Key Findings in northwest Minnesota:

• In northwest Minnesota, 62 percent of manufacturing survey respondents indicated a moderate or severe shortage of workers. A workforce shortage--now and predicted three years into the future--is most apparent here and in southwest Minnesota where 63 percent of respondents said they were experiencing a moderate or serious workforce shortage.
• Workforce shortages were highest for skilled production and scientist and engineering positions; lowest in low-skilled production, and management and administration.
• Collaboration with education is viewed as important in developing high-performing workers, yet when compared with national manufacturing respondents surveyed by the National Association of Manufacturers, Minnesota manufacturers collaborated far less on educational activities. Untapped opportunities for successful manufacturing/educational collaboration remain throughout the state. However, in northwest Minnesota a relatively high 68 percent of respondents indicated collaborating, compared to the statewide average of 54 percent.
• Regional differences in practices used to recruit and retain employees exist. Northwest Minnesota respondents were much more likely to hire older, more experienced workers and to increase wages to retain their top talent than respondents in other regions.
• When it comes to training, northwest Minnesota survey respondents were most likely to have a training budget and more likely to train up to 100 percent of their workforce. Respondents also indicated a greater need for supervisory/management skills training.

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Among Key Findings in southeast Minnesota:

• In southeast Minnesota, 51 percent of manufacturing survey respondents indicated a moderate or severe shortage of workers. In fact, workforce shortages--now and predicted three years into the future--are most apparent in southwest and northwest Minnesota. Specifically, 63 percent of southwest Minnesota respondents said they were experiencing a moderate or serious workforce shortage; northwest Minnesota reported 62 percent.
• Workforce shortages were highest for skilled production and scientist and engineering positions; lowest in low-skilled production, and management and administration.
• Collaboration with education is viewed as important in developing high-performing workers, yet when compared with national manufacturing respondents surveyed by the National Association of Manufacturers, Minnesota manufacturers collaborated far less on educational activities. Manufacturers in the southeast are bucking that trend: They had the highest reported rate of collaboration at 69 percent.
• Regional differences in practices used to recruit and retain employees exist. Southeast Minnesota respondents were more likely to use 401(k) and other retirement plans as a workforce retention tactic than respondents in other regions of Minnesota. They were also more likely to use public-sector placement services, newspapers, and industry publications to recruit employees. To encourage and recruit newer talent into the manufacturing industry, respondents in this region favor youth apprenticeship and mentoring programs.
• When it comes to training, employees working in this region are more likely to get training than those in all other regions. Only 13 percent of southeast survey respondents have no training budget – the lowest of all regions.

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Among Key Findings in southwest Minnesota:

Workforce shortages--now and predicted three years into the future--are most acute in this region. Specifically, 63 percent of southwest Minnesota respondents said they were experiencing a moderate or serious workforce shortage.

• Workforce shortages were highest for skilled production and scientist and engineering positions; lowest in low-skilled production, and management and administration.
• Collaboration with education is viewed as important in developing high-performing workers, yet when compared with national manufacturing respondents surveyed by the National Association of Manufacturers, Minnesota manufacturers collaborated far less on educational activities. However, southwest had one of the highest rates of collaboration in the state; 68 percent of respondents indicated participating in job fairs, career days, and youth apprenticeship and mentoring programs.
• Regional differences in practices used to recruit and retain employees exist. Southwest Minnesota respondents were more likely to use 401(k) and other retirement plans as a workforce retention tactic than respondents in other regions of Minnesota. They were also more likely to use public-sector placement services, newspapers, and industry publications to recruit employees.
• When it comes to training, manufacturing employees in southwest Minnesota appear to get more of it. Survey respondents tended to have a larger percentage of all employees who receive training each year than respondents in other regions. The use of local community and technical colleges for training in skills businesses need and in training or upgrading skills of current workers also rated higher.

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Among Key Findings in Twin Cities metro area:

• In Minnesota’s metro area, 48 percent of manufacturing survey respondents indicated a moderate or severe shortage of employees. Only one other region was lower: Northeast at 44 percent. A workforce shortage--now and predicted three years into the future--is most apparent in southwest Minnesota where 63 percent of respondents said they were experiencing a moderate or serious workforce shortage.
• Workforce shortages were highest for skilled production and scientist and engineering positions; lowest in low-skilled production, and management and administration.
• Collaboration with education is viewed as important in developing high-performing workers, yet when compared with national manufacturing respondents surveyed by the National Association of Manufacturers, Minnesota manufacturers collaborated far less on educational activities. While untapped opportunities for successful manufacturing/educational collaboration exist throughout the state, only 45 percent of survey respondents in the metro area indicated any collaboration with educational institutions -- the lowest in the state.
• Regional differences in practices used to recruit and retain employees exist. Metro area respondents cited wage increases, healthcare benefits and 401(k) or other retirement plans as their top three practices and were more likely than other regions to offer tuition reimbursement for recruitment and retention purposes. In addition, metro area respondents were likely to undertake initiatives to improve organizational culture or arrange temporary or contract work arrangements.
• When it comes to training, metro area survey respondents were more likely to need English language fluency, English as a Second Language training, or other skills than all other respondents. This correlates with the high response of metro and central respondents to focus recruitment on legal immigrants.

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Support Perkins Career and Technical Education Initiative (continued)

Background: Moving Forward Under Perkins IV

The Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 (Perkins IV) directs how Perkins funds are used for secondary, postsecondary, and adult career and technical education (CTE). Perkins IV replaces the 1998 Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act (Perkins III).

The Office of the Chancellor (OOC) of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities is the responsible agency under the federal legislation and state statute. Along with the Minnesota Department of Education, the OOC is required to submit a five-year plan for CTE to the U.S. Department of Education by April 1, 2008. The Minnesota Perkins CTE State Plan, a draft plan document has been prepared jointly by staff in the Office of the Chancellor, Minnesota State Colleges and Universities, and at the Minnesota Department of Education (available at /www.perkinsplan.project.mnscu.edu/).

Focus of the Minnesota Perkins CTE State Plan

Minnesota receives approximately $20 million annually to support CTE at the high school and 2-year college levels. This grant is managed by the OOC in collaboration with Minnesota Department of Education.

A new feature of the Minnesota Perkins CTE State Plan requires the formation of single consortium made up of high school and college partners, who will jointly submit a single local plan starting in July 1, 2008. Minnesota expects to have around 25 local consortia that will be implementing the intent of Perkins IV in high schools and colleges.

These local consortia will be implementing strategies that focus on:

• Developing collaborative partnerships, with career pathway and programs of study, for providing a continuum of education programming and support services. The goal is to ensure smooth transitions from secondary into post-secondary education, in and out of post-secondary education, and between education and employment.
• Applying the same continuum of education programming and support services for students of color, for under-served populations, and for special populations, as those that are applied to other groups.
• Establishing a system of accountability that distinguishes between technical skill proficiency and academic success.
• Sustaining a statewide CTE consortium structure in which school districts and colleges are jointly attracting many high performing CTE students. These students will complete their education with sound academic knowledge and strong technical skills, preparing them for success in the 21st century economy.

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We Need Your Feedback

We're trying to make this newsletter as timely and useful as we possibly can and, to accomplish that goal, we need to know what you want to know. We need and welcome any feedback you can offer – especially concerning topics of broad statewide or regional interest to the WIBs and all other partners. To register your questions, comments, complaints and suggestions, simply send an e-mail to Kathy.Sweeney@state.mn.us. We'll do our best to address your concerns directly and use your feedback to help us develop articles for future editions of the newsletter.

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