Pa. Fund for Workforce Solutions Salutes State Senate's Unanimous Passage of Industry Partnership Legislation

HARRISBURG, PA (May 10, 2011) — A unique statewide collaborative of philanthropic organizations today saluted the Pennsylvania Senate for unanimously passing Senate Bill 552, demonstrating bipartisan legislative backing for the state's nationally recognized investment in Industry Partnerships.

The philanthropic collaborative — the Pennsylvania Fund for Workforce Solutions (PFWS) — called on the Pennsylvania House of Representatives to take up and quickly pass the bill, which would maintain and strengthen a successful initiative that benefits businesses and expands opportunities for workers.

"We have a proven program that helps people receive training for jobs that actually exist and can sustain a family," said Tony Ross, President of the United Way of Pennsylvania. "Passing Industry Partnership legislation will help keep Pennsylvania businesses competitive and grow our economy as we continue to recover from this horrific recession."

"Giving businesses the opportunity to help develop training programs is critical to achieving a workforce whose skills match industry needs," said Senator Mike Brubaker, the bill's sponsor. "Industry Partnerships are successful — across Pennsylvania nearly 6,300 employers from 20 industries are involved in 76 active Industry Partnerships and have trained more than 91,190 workers." Partnerships across the state connect to critical Pennsylvania industries such as advanced manufacturing, health care, information technology, logistics and transportation, agriculture and food processing, and building and construction.

Industry Partnerships bring together multiple employers and workers in an industry to identify and address common workforce needs. Statistics show that individuals trained through Industry Partnerships receive an average wage increase of 6.6%.

“The Pennsylvania Workforce Investment Board pioneered the use of Industry Partnerships in order to focus workforce development resources efficiently,” said David Malone, President and CEO of Gateway Financial and Business Chair of the Pennsylvania Workforce Investment Board. “This approach has now been adopted throughout the country. We applaud the Senate’s leadership and the unanimous passage of Senate Bill 552, and we look forward to quick passage by the House.”

Pennsylvania's reform of workforce training programs is founded on building workforce partnerships so that state investments in skills connect to the needs of critical industries. Workers benefit because they get vital knowledge about the skills needed to land a job or move up, and because Industry Partnerships help spread effective management practices, which lead to higher wages and more advancement.

The Senate bill now goes to the House of Representatives for further action.