US Senator Debbie Stabenow introduced a new agenda last week to connect young people with trade skills and manufacturing jobs.
According to a report from the National Association of Manufacturers, there will be 3 point 5 million manufacturing jobs available by 2025, but due to a worker shortage, two million of those will go unfilled.
Senator Stabenow said her new agenda will include a series of bills meant to help fill those jobs. She said one of those bills would build on existing funding for trade programs.
“My New Skills for New Jobs would have a federal match dollar for dollar. For every dollar the state puts in the federal government will put in a dollar so we can double the job training that’s being done right now.”
Stabenow said another one of her goals is to increase the number of career counselors.
“We have one career counselor to every 729 students in Michigan. Our counselors don’t have the time to let students know about these other great careers that may not involve four-year college.”
So far Stabenow says she has introduced roughly six bills under the new agenda, which have been largely bipartisan.