AlabamaWorks, a workforce and economic development organization in the state department of commerce, unveiled this week a set of seven regional profiles that display key information about what each part of the state has to offer.
The profiles were produced by the Alabama Commission on Higher Education and Equivolve Consulting in partnership with the Alabama Workforce Council and the Governor’s Office. Funding was provided by a grant from the Lumina Foundation.
“Creating opportunities and empowering students for success begins with a thorough knowledge of the current workforce landscape as well as factors that impact access to education and employment,” the agencies noted in a release.
The organizations involved aimed to produce “key data points” for each region of the state. Their ultimate goal for the profiles is to “provide a foundation for collaboration, shared resources and enhanced communication among stakeholders in order to achieve the state’s attainment goal,” per a release.
The state’s “attainment goal” is the adding of 500,000 credentialed workers to Alabama’s pool of hireable labor by the year 2025, a longtime priority of Alabama Governor Kay Ivey.
“Growing Alabama’s workforce is essential for our state’s prosperity, and it is why I set the goal of adding 500,000 more skilled Alabamians to the labor force,” remarked Ivey in a statement on Wednesday.
She added, “I am proud of the great work going on throughout the state, and these Regional Workforce Profiles will help broaden our efforts.”
Donny Jones, the executive director of the Region 3 Workforce Development Council/West AlabamaWorks, explained in a release that the new workforce profiles are “going to provide the regional workforce councils a framework to connect the dots and help all partners understand overall goals are and how to get there.”
“As we continue building out our skills-based hiring programs and initiatives, these regional profiles will enable us to further understand the complexities of each region and more effectively reach our target audience,” noted Alabama Workforce Council chairman Tim McCartney.
The seven workforce profiles can be accessed here.
Henry Thornton is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can contact him by email: henry@new-yhn.local or on Twitter @HenryThornton95.
