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Workforce Florida Weekly Update 9-26-07 |
CONTENTS The State & RegionsGovernor Crist Details Florida’s Leadership in Reducing Greenhouse Gases, Addressing Global Climate Change ~ Announces new solar energy plant in Florida by FPL Group. NEW YORK CITY – Governor Charlie Crist today promoted Florida’s leadership in addressing global climate change to an international audience that included former heads of state, top business executives, preeminent scholars, and representatives of key non-governmental organizations working together to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases. Governor Crist addressed the energy and climate change focus group at the Clinton Global Initiative 2007 Annual Meeting. “We must wisely use our resources and protect our environment – or future generations will not enjoy them as we do today,” Governor Crist said. “We must take action and make every effort to boldly do our best to do what is right. We have a responsibility to be good stewards of our natural resources and our beautiful surroundings.” Governor Crist also joined FPL Group Inc. chairman and chief executive officer Lew Hay in announcing FPL Group’s $2.4 billion investment program aimed at increasing the use of solar thermal energy and reducing carbon dioxide emissions. One of the country’s largest electric utilities, FPL is planning to build 300 megawatts of solar generating capacity in Florida. The new facility will avoid nearly 11 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions over a 20-year period. FPL Groups serves customers in 26 states, and its principal subsidiary, Florida Power & Light Company, serves more than 4.3 million customer accounts in Florida. "It only makes sense that the sunshine state would have a solar power plant,” Governor Crist said. “This plant will serve as an example to other Florida and American companies that alternative energy can work." For more information about Governor Crist’s actions to address global climate change, please visit www.MyFloridaClimate.com or www.flgov.com. Milken Institute Releases Report On Best Performing
Cities 2007: Where America’s Jobs Are Created And Sustained – Ocala
Ranked Number One. For the third consecutive year, Florida
metropolitan areas scored high on the Milken Institute / Greenstreet
Partners 2007 Best Performing Cities Index, taking three of
the top six spots – including this year’s top-ranked
metro, Ocala. But their hold on the Index loosened slightly
as other cities rose in the annual ranking of where America’s
jobs are being created and sustained. Nationwide trends influenced
many regional shifts, including a rebound in the tech sector
(boosting metros in the San Francisco Bay Area, Salt Lake City,
Utah and Dallas-Plano-Irving, Texas), increasing global trade
(pushing Wilmington, North Carolina to 2nd place) and even
the effects of migration as a result of Hurricane Katrina (particularly
Lafayette and Baton Rouge, Louisiana). The top 10 performers
(with its last ranking, in 2005, in parentheses) of the 200
largest metros: Miami/Fort Lauderdale Is Florida’s Leading Metro Area for Tech Employment, New Report Shows - 9 out of Top 10 Florida Cybercities Add Tech Jobs in 2005. Orlando, FL (September 25, 2007) – AeA, the nation's largest trade association representing all segments of the high-tech industry, today released Florida Cybercities 2007. The report provides a comprehensive review of the high-tech industry statewide and in the 10 largest metropolitan areas by high-tech employment, wages, payroll, and establishments. "AeA has issued this report as a sequel to the Cyberstates 2007 report released in April," said William T. Archey, President and CEO of AeA. "That report demonstrated that Florida had the 4th largest high-tech workforce in the country. Given that this seems to be a well kept secret – even within Florida – AeA thought it would be useful to dig deeper into this story and vividly show how important high tech is throughout the state." Miami/Fort Lauderdale was the state's largest technology hub, employing some 75,300 tech industry workers in 2005, the most recent metropolitan data available. Following Miami/Fort Lauderdale in tech employment was Tampa/St. Petersburg (55,900 jobs), Orlando (42,600), Palm Bay/Melbourne (20,900), and Jacksonville (18,200). Palm Bay/Melbourne had the highest concentration of tech workers in Florida as a percentage of the overall private sector workforce, 119 out of every 1,000 private sector workers, and they received the state's highest average tech wage, $65,800 in 2005. "This report may surprise a lot of people around the country who do not think of Florida as a high-tech state," said Maryann Fiala, Executive Director of AeA's Florida Council. "In fact, many people in Florida may not realize that the state employs more tech workers than every state but California, Texas, and New York. Florida's high-tech economy is diffused across the state. Nine of the state's top ten metropolitan areas added jobs in 2005. This benefits Florida’s economy greatly, as tech industry jobs pay, on average, 70 percent more than the state's average private sector wage." Florida's statewide high-tech industry employment added 10,900 net jobs, or by four percent, for a tech industry total of 276,400 jobs in 2005, the most current state data available. This makes Florida the 4th ranked cyberstate by tech industry employment and the 2nd fastest growing cyberstate in 2005. Florida Cybercities 2007 is directly comparable to AeA's annual Cyberstates report. Released in April, Cyberstates 2007 provides a comprehensive review of the high-technology industry at the national and state-by-state level. AeA members can purchase Florida Cybercities 2007 for $45; non-members for $90. Please visit www.aeanet.org/FLcybercities to download the report, or call 408.987.4200. For more specific metropolitan level data, view individual press releases for Florida's Top 10 cybercities at: www.aeanet.org/FLcybercitiesPR. AWI Announces Florida’s August Unemployment Rate Reflects Little Change ~ Job growth was lead by the leisure and hospitality industries. TALLAHASSEE – Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation (AWI) Director Monesia T. Brown last week announced Florida’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased from 3.9 percent in July 2007 to 4.0 percent in August 2007. Based on the latest nationwide data, Florida had the lowest unemployment rate of the ten most populous states and continued to be below the national average. The comparable national unemployment rate for August was 4.6 percent. Out of the civilian labor force of 9,225,000, there were 370,000 jobless Floridian’s, up 6,000 (1.6 percent) over the month. August reflected a slight decrease in the job growth rate. However, Florida’s annual job growth rate was 1.5 percent in August, which was slightly faster than the national rate of 1.2 percent. Nonagricultural employment increased over the month by 3,000 to a total of 8,143,800 jobs. Based on the latest nationwide data, Florida ranked third in job growth among the ten most populous states, behind Texas and California. From August 2006 to August 2007, job growth was led by the leisure and hospitality industry (+35,700 jobs) and the education and health industry (+35,000 jobs). Access the full release at: http://www.labormarketinfo.com/library/press/release.pdf. The next Florida employment release will be October 19, 2007 at 10:00am. Workforce Florida Releases Individual Summaries and “Preliminary Findings” from the Florida Workforce System’s 2007 Regional Forums: Conversations on Designing the Future and Delivering Better Solutions for Talent and Business. Florida’s workforce system was charged with convening regional conversations about talent, careers, business partnerships, and opportunities for improvement in workforce processes. In order to access the opinions and ideas in Florida’s diverse regional markets, Workforce Florida, in partnership with he Agency for Workforce Innovation (AWI) and the Workforce Development Association, launched regional conversations in six markets, including: Fort Lauderdale, August 23, 2007; Jacksonville, August 30, 2007; Orlando, September 5, 2007; Tallahassee, September 10, 2007; Destin, September 11, 2007; and Sarasota, September 12, 2007. Over 500 Forum participants across these locations consistently focused dialog on the following items:
NAEP 2007 Mathematics and Reading Results Released. Results
from the NAEP assessments in reading and mathematics part of
the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) were released
today. The Nation’s Report Card: Reading 2007 and The
Nation’s Report Card: Mathematics 2007 report national
and state-level performance of fourth- and eighth-graders.
National data are compared to previous assessments in 2005
in both subjects and 1992 in reading and 1990 in mathematics. ACCESS Florida Honored as Innovations in American Government Award Winner - Harvard University's Ash Institute Recognizes Automated Community Connection to Economic Self-Sufficiency (Tuesday September 25, 9:00 am ET). CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government today announced Florida's Automated Community Connection to Economic Self-Sufficiency (ACCESS) program as a 2007 Innovations in American Government Award winner. ACCESS Florida was one of seven award winners announced at yesterday's Innovations in American Government Awards twentieth anniversary reception in Washington, D.C. Acknowledged for its dramatic improvements in how citizens receive public assistance benefits, the program will receive $100,000 to advise other municipalities nationwide on the replication of its successes. Launched in 2004, ACCESS Florida automates the process of applying for public assistance benefits for more than 2.2 million Florida residents. Florida's Department of Children and Families currently processes 1.8 million Food Stamp; 290,000 Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and 1.8 million Medicaid applications per year. Under the department's previous paper-based system, beneficiaries waited in lengthy lines and sat through a time-consuming interview process to apply for benefits. Staff spent valuable hours entering paper applications into the agency's database. Thanks to the efficiencies achieved through policy, procedure and systems innovations, the State of Florida Department of Children and Families reports $83 million in annual cost savings. The department employs 40 percent fewer staff despite a 600,000 increase in benefit applicants over the last four years. Most importantly, beneficiaries continue to express positive feedback on the automated system; according to a recent satisfaction survey, 95 percent of first time applicants planned to use the system again and 83 percent required no assistance in filing benefits applications online. Features of ACCESS Florida include:
Central Florida Hospitals Expect Staffing Needs Growth - Partners for a Healthy Community Releases First Report. ORLANDO, FL … Central Florida hospitals are feeling the effects of an inadequate labor supply matching an increasing United States trend, according to a report from Partners for a Healthy Community (PHC), a consortium of healthcare providers, educational institutions and community partners in Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Lake and Sumter Counties whose mission is to increase the supply of trained healthcare professionals in Central Florida. The report, “Nursing and Allied Health Demand in Central Florida Hospitals: Vacancies, Turnover and Future Need for Personnel,” states that hospitals expect growth in their staffing needs for many nursing and allied health roles over the next two years. Increasing demand for healthcare associated with an aging general population is likely to cause demand for healthcare workers to outpace growth in supply. “This survey is an important first step to identify the healthcare workforce needs in our five counties,” said Willanne Colwell, chair of Partners for a Healthy Community and director, education and development for Orlando Regional Healthcare. “Providing this information to local schools will provide a more accurate picture for their program planning.” PHC received a healthy response rate of 80 percent, which the organization attributes to the hospitals’ ties to the consortium. The responding facilities and systems represented in the survey data contain a total of 4,155 beds or 86 percent of the total number of licensed hospital beds in Central Florida. This research is the product of collaborative work conducted by the PHC Data Collection and Forecasting Committee, whose primary objective is to create a process for healthcare demand/supply and education capacity data collection, forecasting and reporting. Members of this committee include representatives from Adventist Health System, Florida Center for Nursing, Florida Hospital College of Health Sciences, Health Council of East Central Florida, Inc., Orange County Public Schools, Orlando Regional Healthcare, Owen Wentworth Consulting, WORKFORCE CENTRAL FLORIDA and Valencia Community College. Special thanks to the Florida Center for Nursing for their in-kind contribution of Dr. Jen Nooney, associate director of research. For more information on Partners for a Healthy Community visit http://www.workforcecentralflorida.com/phc/. WORKFORCE CENTRAL FLORIDA [WCF] will host the fifth annual State of the Workforce Summit on Wednesday, October 31, 2007. More than 400 CEOs, human resource professionals, business owners, elected officials and managers are expected to participate in the half-day summit consisting of 12 breakout sessions and a luncheon. The keynote speaker will be Monica Wofford, author of several books and training products including Contagious Leadership – Learning the Art of Successful Leadership. The Summit will be held at The Florida Mall Hotel from 8 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. Tickets for the event are $40 for individuals and $500 for corporate packs of eight (includes priority seating at luncheon). Keynote speaker Monica Wofford, a sought-after trainer and speaker with more than 17 years of experience, leverages scientific research and data to design curricula and presentations that positively impact both behavior and performance. Monica has penned several books and training products including Contagious Leadership, Contagious Confidence, Contagious Customer Service and Speaking of Success (with Jack Canfield, Stephen Covey, and Ken Blanchard). Monica’s proven strategies, timely techniques, and powerful insights into effective leadership and success, masterfully transform managers into leaders, unproductive employees into top performers, and high performers into long term contributing team members. Advance registration is required. For more information go to: http://www.wcfla.com/employers/state_of_wfs.asp. The NationSmall Business Administration Releases Testimony:
Preliminary Views on Issues Related to the Women's Business
Center Program (GAO-07-1244T, September 20). The Small Business Administration
(SBA) provides training and counseling services to women entrepreneurs
through the Women’s Business Center (WBC) program. With
approximately $12 million in fiscal year 2007, SBA funded awards
to 99 WBCs. However, Congress and WBCs have expressed concerns
about the uncertain nature of the program’s funding structure.
Concerns have also been raised about the possibility that the
WBC and two other SBA programs, the Small Business Development
Center (SBDC) and SCORE programs, are duplicating each other’s
efforts. Access the full report at: House Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Modernizing Unemployment Insurance to Reduce Barriers for Jobless Workers. On September 19, 2007, the House Subcommittee on Income Security and Family Support of the Committee on Ways and Means held hold a hearing on reducing gaps and disparities in access to unemployment insurance, especially for low-wage and part-time workers. The Unemployment Insurance (UI) system, established in 1935, provides temporary and partial wage replacement for unemployed workers. Since the establishment of the program, there has been a significant rise in the number of women in the workforce, an increase in low-wage and part-time employment, and a decline in manufacturing employment. Past reports from the Advisory Council on Unemployment Compensation and from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) have highlighted certain features in many States’ UI programs that prevent them from more adequately responding to these long-term employment trends. For example, an estimated 31 States do not consider any wages earned by a dislocated worker from either their last completed calendar quarter of employment or from the quarter in which they file for benefits - excluding up to six months of earnings. Not counting a worker’s most recent earnings makes it more difficult for some low-wage workers to achieve minimum earnings levels for UI eligibility. Other barriers to coverage include restrictions on UI receipt for former part-time workers seeking reemployment in a part-time job and for those leaving employment for compelling family reasons. Subcommittee Chairman McDermott has introduced legislation, the Unemployment Insurance Modernization Act (H.R. 2233), to provide up to $7 billion from the federal unemployment insurance trust funds to encourage, assist and reward States for removing such barriers for jobless workers. In announcing the hearing, Chairman McDermott stated, "Too many workers, especially those in low-wage and part-time employment, are excluded from the Unemployment Insurance system. Women in particular are hampered by policies that were crafted five, six and seven decades ago. We should actively encourage States to make further progress in covering all unemployed workers who have worked hard and who have had taxes paid into the system on their behalf." The hearing focused on policies designed to modernize the Unemployment Insurance system and reduce barriers to coverage for low-wage and part-time workers. View the witness list and testimony at: http://waysandmeans.house.gov/hearings.asp?formmode=detail&hearing=585. Grant and Competitive Award Opportunities and NoticesFor current information, visit the External Grant Opportunities page.Featured Opportunity:(none) Upcoming Meetings, Conferences and
Events
Workforce Florida Board and Related Meetings Schedule:For up-to-date WFI board meeting info please check the calendar at the WFI website. October 17, 2007 November 7, 2007 November 8, 2007 Other Meetings/Conferences/Events:
Florida College Access Network Conference (FCAN) October 18-19, 2007 October 25 - 26, 2007 January 22-25, 2008 May 18-20, 2008 Odds and Ends2007-2008 Career Cruiser Available. The Florida Department of Education Division of Workforce Education recently distributed the 2007-2008 Career Cruiser, a career and education magazine to all middle schools. The Career Cruiser includes information on occupations, personal assessment activities, and career planning. Students can learn more about themselves and how to match their interests and abilities to career and education options. A Teacher’s Guide is only available on the Workforce Education Web site at www.fldoe.org/workforce/ced. Additional resources for the career and education planning course include the Educator’s Toolkit at www.fldoe.org/workforce/ced, CHOICES Planner or CHOICES Explorer at www.flchoices.org, and FACTS (www.facts.org). Scholar Urges HR to Work With Schools (by Mark Schoeff Jr., Workforce Week, Vol.8, Issue 9). America brings unrivaled strengths to the global marketplace, including its penchant for innovation and its entrepreneurial and competitive spirit, according to Michael Porter, a professor at Harvard Business School. But Porter is concerned that the U.S. is failing in human capital development. “Our system is not cranking out the quality of people we need,” Porter said at the first National Summit on American Competitiveness in Washington on Tuesday, September 18. “Education is fundamental.” The Harvard scholar urges human resource leaders to help ensure that schools are producing students with the background that business needs. “The HR function needs to stretch its boundaries into the educational system itself,” he said in an interview after participating in a panel at the event, which was sponsored by the Department of Commerce and featured executives, academicians and government officials. As an example, he pointed to hundreds of Massachusetts health care device companies that came together to identify critical skills and work with colleges and universities to develop them. The traditional approach in which education is under the aegis of the government while business is the domain of the private sector doesn’t work today, Porter said. “It’s got to be a collaborative process,” he said. “In the course of a few years, you can have a really big impact.” Read the complete article at: http://www.workforce.com/section/00/article/25/12/52.html. International Education Report Shows U.S. College Grad Rankings Fall From #1 1995 To 16 In 2007. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) published their annual data and analysis on international education systems, Education at a Glance. The report presents both positive and negative trends in American education. The U.S. led the developed world in the percent of college-age students successfully completing a university level education in 1995, but the nation now stands at 16th place. Despite the inability to increase education attainment rates among younger workers, Americans engage in lifelong learning at higher rate than peers in 28 of the 30 OECD countries. Thirty seven percent of working-age Americans participated in informal job-related education and training, compared to the 18 percent OECD average. “Skills and knowledge in science are of particular interest as they increasingly represent a principal source of innovation and growth in knowledge-based economies.” While the U.S. produces a comparable percent of business, social science, law and humanities graduates, it lags OECD and European Union countries in the percent of recent graduates with science, technology, engineering and mathematic degrees. To review the report and download data visit Education at a Glance 2007 online at: http://www.oecd.org/document/30/0,3343,en_2649_201185_39251550_1_1_1_1,00.html. Get Business Permits. The www.Business.gov Web site has a new feature to help small-business owners obtain federal, state and local permits and professional licenses. It’s a one-stop resource that could save you hours of time researching and finding the information you need. Go to the Web site and click the “Permit Me” link. You’ll find a list of licensing and permit resources across all the federal, state and local domains. Reduce Your Taxes – Learn How Using IRS Phone Forums. Small businesses can get helpful tax information from monthly phone forums (conference calls) sponsored by the IRS. The phone forums are free and convenient – you can call in from the comfort of your home or office. The monthly phone forums discuss topics of interest to businesses. Some of the previous issues covered included powers-of-attorney, energy credits, electronic IRS for businesses and Form 1099. Registration for the phone forums is easy and early registration is encouraged. There is no registration or participation fee. For more information, go to http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=99202,00.html. Quote for the Week:“The greatest problem in communication is the illusion that it has been accomplished.” George Bernard Shaw |
