In the past, employer-provided, job-specific training for new employees and continuing education for those who wished to advance in their jobs were often sufficient to keep abreast of technological changes. This is no longer the case, however. The substantial monetary and time expenditures associated with retraining programs that are begun only…

The displaced worker is an individual who has been laid off from a job and has little or no hope of returning to that particular position. The number of displaced workers is large and is apt to increase. Displaced workers are typically male, older, not highly educated, and are union members with several years of seniority and above-average wages.…