Workforce funds vital to region

For the past six years, the Workforce Investment Board of Herkimer, Madison and Oneida Counties and our Working Solutions centers have provided counseling, referrals and services to people losing work or trying to re-start their lives. Working Solutions centers in Utica, Rome, Oneida and Herkimer serve thousands of job seekers every year.

Working in partnership with the state Department of Labor and our local partners, a system is in place that educates, trains and assists individuals to reach their potential. Employers have used the programs to upgrade the skills of their work force. At a time when needs are growing, we are facing dire changes in funding.

Washington budget reports indicate that as of July 1, 28 percent of the funding needed to keep vital programs running will be cut. This is not a case of trimming the fat. That has already been done .

According to the New York Association of Training and Employment Professionals, "each year starting in 2001, USDOL has requested that its budget be cut." NYATEP notes that while Congress has restored some of the proposed reductions to programs each year, funding has declined by 21 percent over this period — which amounts to a 37 percent cut when adjusted for inflation. Support has included that of Rep. Sherwood Boehlert, R-New Hartford, who has battled against cuts.

The administration is seeking an additional 15 percent cut in funding for the 2007 budget. If that happens, the counselors who advised hundreds of workers at Ethan Allen, Rome Cable, Oneida Ltd., Carrier Corp. and LaSalle Labs about career choices and training would no longer be there. Workers who are at their most vulnerable would be on their own. That is simply unacceptable.

In 2003 and 2004, the government compared outcomes of workers who did not receive services under the federal Trade Adjustment Act against those who went through the One-Stop centers, such as Working Solutions. The rate at which workers entered employment at 13 percentage points higher for those who has help through the One-Stops. Workers who found jobs on their own made about 80 percent of what they formerly made. Workers who used the One-Stops made 101 percent. The system works.

In the past few months, Working Solutions helped Family Dollar screen more than 5,000 applicants and has helped Empire Aero find workers and search the region for the best workers. Working Solutions has connected people with disabilities and employment opportunities through new service delivery methods never before practiced in this area and worked to develop innovative information technology training projects. Working Solutions works.

It is important that the bipartisan support demonstrated by Sen. Hillary Clinton, Boehlert and others, be recognized as vital to the well being of our family, friends, neighbors and regional economy. It is urgent that we avert the 2007 cuts and allow us to continue to help grow jobs, restore hope and provide effective, efficient service to the employers and job-seekers of our region.

Robin O'Brien is chair of the Workforce Investment Board of Herkimer, Madison and Oneida Counties.

Call to Action:

ACTION 1) Take Action Now: Cantwell/Collins "Dear Colleague" Letter

Senators Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Susan Collins (R-ME) are now circulating a "Dear Colleague" letter requesting that Senate Appropriations Subcommittee Chair Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA) and Ranking Member Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA) restore funding to fiscal 2005 levels for the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) and Employment Service programs in fiscal year 2007.

Click here to go to NAWB's Advocacy Central/Cap Wiz to send an email message or call your Senators at their Washington, D.C. offices on Tuesday and Wednesday, urging them to sign onto the letter by Wednesday, March 29.

ACTION 2) Update: House Budget Resolution

Chairman Jim Nussle (R-OK) has indicated it is his intention for the House Budget Committee to mark-up their budget resolutions this week. WIBs with Members on the Budget Committee should ask them to support any effort to restore funding levels in the Function 500 discretionary programs. Click here for NAWB's Budget Resolution talking points. Be sure that your Representative understands what happens in their Districts if the massive cuts proposed in domestic spending become law. For a list of the Members of the House Budget, Click Here. To contact your House Representative, Click Here.

Stay tuned for further Budget Resolution updates this week at deliberations unfold on Capitol Hill!

ACTION 3) Still A Priority: Meet Your Members of Congress During the Easter Recess

WHEN: During the upcoming Congressional Easter recess April 10-21.

NAWB urges WIB private-sector members meet with their Members of Congress at home over the Easter Recess. Your WIB's private-sector members are the best messengers about the impacts your business community will feel if your funding resources are no longer available to provide them with unique busines services or customized training.

Invite your Members of Congress to visit One-Stops to talk with the people who will be affected by the potential closure of One-Stop Centers and/or the reduction of the services if the 2007 budget cuts are implemented. Your US Senators and Representatives need to understand and see firsthand the value that WIBs and One-Stops bring to their communities. To find the email address or location of your Senators' or Representatives' District Office, go to NAWB's Cap-Wiz tool on the website at http://www.capwiz.com/nawb/dbq/officials/.