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ERIC Number: ED603279
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2020-Feb-20
Pages: 2
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Manufacturing Workers Need Investment in Their Digital Skills. Digital Skills Series
National Skills Coalition
American jobs are undergoing massive technological transformation, with even entry-level workers now expected to use all manner of digital devices and equipment. Nowhere is this more true than in the manufacturing sector, which directly employs more than one in ten U.S. workers and indirectly supports millions more. To succeed in this rapidly transforming environment, workers need broad-based digital problem-solving skills that equip them to learn a wide variety of today's technologies and navigate continued changes in the future. This digital literacy includes both the capacity to use technology and the cognitive skills necessary to navigate it successfully. Data from a respected international assessment, administered by National Center for Education Statistics at the U.S. Department of Education, show that a full 16 percent of currently employed American manufacturing workers have no digital skills, and an additional 19 percent have very limited skills. Another one third (36 percent) have a basic level of proficiency, while just 29 percent have the advanced skills necessary to be most adaptable to changing technology. Nearly one in six manufacturing workers (16 percent) fall into in the category of workers with no digital skills. For advanced and precision manufacturing to continue to thrive in the United States, workers will need to equip themselves with in-demand digital skills - and businesses will need to invest in helping their employees build such skills. Congress can take action by investing in upskilling for individual workers and jobseekers, and supporting industry-led training partnerships.
National Skills Coalition. 1250 Connecticut Avenue NW Suite 200, Washington, DC 20036. Tel: 202-223-8991; e-mail: info@nationalskillscoalition.org; Web site: https://www.nationalskillscoalition.org/
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: Adult Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Walmart Foundation
Authoring Institution: National Skills Coalition; American Institutes for Research (AIR)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A