To address the industry’s skills gap crisis, U.S. manufacturers recently committed to provide training opportunities to nearly 1.2 million manufacturing workers over the next five years.
Jay Timmons, president and CEO of the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), and Carolyn Lee, executive director of the Manufacturing Institute, joined President Donald Trump and Advisor to the President Ivanka Trump to sign the Pledge to America’s Workers. The initiative asks companies and trade groups nationwide to commit to expand programs that educate, train and reskill American workers from high-school age to near retirement.
“Manufacturers face a workforce crisis with more than half a million unfilled manufacturing jobs today and 2.4 million jobs that may go unfilled by 2028,” said Timmons. “But manufacturers are also problem solvers and committed to being part of the solution. So today, manufacturers proudly make this pledge to the American worker: we will continue to invest in our workforce and provide 1,186,000 Americans with the opportunity to receive training and development that will enhance their skills and prepare them for the next step on their career journey.”
The 509,000 open manufacturing jobs reported in May marked an all-time high for the industry. According to a 2018 skills gap study, as many as 2.4 million manufacturing jobs will go unfilled by 2028. The most recent Manufacturers’ Outlook Survey also found that the inability to find skilled workers remains the single greatest challenge facing manufacturers today and for the past six quarters.
“With a record number of job openings right now — and many more expected over the next decade — the future of the manufacturing industry will be tied to the future of its workforce,” said Lee. “That’s why we are committed to supporting the manufacturing workforce of today and growing the manufacturing workforce of tomorrow. Our sector’s pledge over the next five years to provide training opportunities to more than a million men and women who make things in America will help keep manufacturing competitive and secure manufacturing’s mantle of leadership well into the future.”
As the largest manufacturing association in the United States, the National Association of Manufacturers represents both small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states.
For more information, visit www.nam.org.
