Council Calls for National Agenda to Build Workforce Skills

The Council on Competitiveness joined with Sens. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) to convene a Congressional briefing on Capitol Hill April 30th to urge policymakers to set a national agenda to equip Americans with the skills needed to compete globally. The briefing was in conjunction with the release of the Council’s latest report, Thrive. The Skills Imperative, which calls for America to leverage untapped opportunities, particularly in the service economy.

The challenges posed by globalization, technological change and volatile financial markets require new workforce strategies that prioritize around skills that are not easily offshored, difficult to replicate and quicken the pace of innovation. According to the report, middle-skilled jobs represent the largest number of job openings in the United States, but have critical shortages.

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