Who Will Grow California's Workforce?

California is facing a skills gap

By 2025, economists predict that over two million jobs in California will go unfilled because they will require a level of education and skills that workers do not have. Industry experts project manufacturing, mining, and agriculture—three key industries in the Golden State—will face the largest skills gaps.

The Central Valley is taking a new approach to building its workforce

One region in California is addressing this shortage with success. Facing a pressing skills gap in agriculture—one of the largest industries in the region—employers and educators in the Central Valley have responded with three innovative solutions:

• Increasing deeper learning, including hands-on learning opportunities, in high school.
• Supporting high school students who want to take college credits (“dual enrollment”).
• Creating affordable pathways to college, including providing support for obtaining financial aid.

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Who Will Grow California’s Workforce? details these partnerships between employers and schools in the Central Valley, and outlines specific steps California policymakers, education administrators, business and community leaders can take to replicate the Central Valley’s success and strengthen the workforce statewide.