Why is the work of OWP so critical?
Five megatrends have converged to significantly alter our way of life and our economic future. How we respond will determine whether we face the erosion of our quality of life, or a brighter economic future.- Skills gap — Sixty-seven percent of new jobs require skills equal to those of someone with completed college coursework. Oregon ranks 46th nationally for postsecondary credentials. Oregon businesses report skills shortages in areas including computer software, English and Spanish language skills, basic reading and math. Fourteen percent of all Oregonians (480,000) are at the lowest literacy level, meaning they have difficulty with tasks like locating information in written documents (paychecks, bills, etc.)
- Demographic shifts — By 2008, 77 million U.S. baby boomers will be eligible to retire, while the number of replacement workers will decline by 1.7 million. In the last 5 years, 43% of all population growth in the U.S resulted from immigration. By 2010, 35% of our workforce will be Hispanic, Black, or Asian.
- Globalization — Last year, China graduated 2.5 million individuals from college, India 2.3 million, and the U.S. only 1.3 million. In 2001, the U.S. produced 76,000 engineers versus 184,000 in India and 352,000 in China. These overseas graduates are willing to work for one-fifth the pay of their U.S. counterparts.
- Rapidly advancing technology/innovation — Seventy percent of today's manufactured goods will be obsolete in 6 years. While Oregon is among tbe top 10 states in terms of foreign exports per gross state product, the number of invention disclosures in the state is small. Oregon receives less than the U.S. average in terms of Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) awards to small business.
- Loss of middle income jobs — Oregon finally has more jobs than before the beginning of the 2001 recession. However, of these 65,000 new jobs, more than 50% paid less than $30,000 a year — a poverty wage for a family of four.
OWP is leading the effort to address these challenges and build a workforce with the skills that meet business demands for the future.
"For the first time in generations, the nation's children could face poorer prospects than their parents and grandparents did."
The National Academies Report, 2006