Nearly a quarter of the Advanced Manufacturing sector’s workforce in the Portland-Vancouver Metro Area is 55 or older. At the same time, only about five percent of the sector’s workforce is under age 24, compared to 12 percent across all industries. Retirements and career changes mean an estimated 94,000 job openings will exist through 2027.
To address these and other industry workforce challenges, WSW and its Columbia-Willamette Workforce Collaborative partners have released the third regional Manufacturing Workforce Plan.
Updated through a series of sessions with industry, education, workforce, economic development and community stakeholders, the plan identifies goals and outlines strategies the public workforce system can deploy to support the manufacturing industry’s workforce needs.
Three identified priority areas are:
1. Make manufacturing a career of choice for the emerging worker.
2. Connect manufacturing to the right candidates now.
3. Strengthen the manufacturing industry.
Workforce development resources and funds are available to aid manufacturing businesses. Contact Darcy Hoffman, Director of Business Services, at dhoffman@workforcesw.org or 360.608.4949.
