Research (Martin, 2008) has shown that speaking and listening are the literacy skills most used in the world of work. Yet, employers frequently bemoan the lack of young people's communication skills, with many believing that it impacts their chances of making it through an interview and their future employability (Simon, 2009). Effective speaking…

A key challenge of Australia's vocational education and training (VET) system is to serve the broad needs of individuals, communities, and industries. This includes the provision of literacy and generic skills which meet the needs of all groups. This study investigates and documents workplace literacy in aged care facilities and call centres,…

A 10-week course called "Communiclearsory" Training was developed to improve the written and oral communications skills of supervisors/foremen in the manufacturing trades. A total of 39 selected supervisors from 2 manufacturing industries in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, were assessed by using the Test of Adult Basic Education (TABE)…

An evaluation of the Mountain Empire Community College workplace literacy program included interviews with representatives from three workplace partners who stated their support for skills training programs in workplace basics. Basic skills instruction was provided to 24 students from 33 industries. Students' basic skills progress and skills…

A project was designed to upgrade workplace basic skills for the purpose of promoting productivity, retrainability, job retention, and/or job advancement. It created a partnership among Hewlett Packard-Fort Collins Site, Lutheran Family Services, and Colorado State University's Division of Continuing Education. Skills needed for representative…

The Connecticut Business and Industry Association's (CBIA's) Statewide Workplace Literacy Program was designed to provide customized basic skills training to adult workers. A full-time workplace literacy coordinator met with company steering committees to identify the company's goals for the training, promote the program internally, select…

A project explored and addressed the communication barriers to union participation of stewards and members of the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union (ACTWU). A questionnaire was developed and distributed to over 300 ACTWU members; 153 responded. Other commitments and communication skills were identified as key barriers to greater…

Mercer County Community College (New Jersey) and six small businesses used federal grant money to develop a model program of workplace literacy that would assist 600 adult workers with inadequate basic skills in performing their jobs. In analyzing the overall skills of the work force, the literacy audit identified these basic skills/literacy…

Parkway Area Adult Basic Education Program formed a partnership with St. John's Mercy Medical Center, St. Luke's Hospital, Watlow Electric, Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, and Literacy Council of Greater St. Louis to develop a model National Workplace Literacy Program. The instructional model developed under Project…

Project TIME (Training Initiative for Manufacturing Employees) was an 18-month National Workplace Literacy Program conducted by Lord Fairfax Community College in conjunction with an automotive parts plant and Triplett Technical and Business Institute in Virginia. Project TIME had three primary objectives: to help employees obtain the basic…

Cuyahoga Community College's (CCC) Unified Technologies Center (UTC) collaborated with three Cleveland area manufacturing companies in a workplace literacy project. The project provided job-related mathematics and communications programs for 302 employees who needed basic skills upgrading to improve their job performance. The project…

In 1992, United Grain Growers (UGG) and Manitoba Pool (MP) formed a partnership to examine the literacy and numeracy needs of their rural grain elevator operators and the potential of delivering a communications enhancement program in the rural areas. During part 1, the committee held a series of initial planning meetings. Both companies held…

A workplace literacy partnership program model was demonstrated at four Chrysler plants in Indiana. Objectives were to improve workers' individual skills, enhance personal productivity, and increase work force job security and plant competitiveness. During the 3-month start-up phase, project staff worked with management and labor representatives…

This publication consists of materials produced by Step Ahead, a National Workplace Literacy Demonstration Project--a partnership between New Mexico State University and Memorial Medical Center, Las Cruces, New Mexico. The project abstract is a one-page summary of facts, objectives, and procedures related to this project, which provided onsite…

The Casco Bay Partnership includes the University of Southern Maine (USM) and seven businesses in greater Portland, Maine, that range from large multinational corporations to small, family-owned businesses. During a 3-year project funded by a National Workplace Literacy Program grant, the partnership designed and delivered workplace basic skills…