Opportunity Occupations: Good pay; no degree required

A Federal Reserve System initiative called “Opportunity Occupations” examines the impact of jobs that don’t require a four-year college degree and typically pay above the national annual median wage of $37,690.

Women Take a Bigger Hit in the First Wave of Job Losses due to COVID-19

Women, especially those without a college degree, have taken a bigger hit in the first wave of job losses due to the pandemic. This imbalance could lead to prolonged damage to women’s employment and labor market attachment if job losses deepen and persist. 

Exploring a Skills-Based Approach to Occupational Mobility

The Philadelphia and Cleveland Feds explore pathways for economic mobility through matching skills exhibited in lower-wage jobs and those needed in higher wage, higher opportunity occupations.

Retirement Savings: The SECURE Act Helps; Can More Be Done?

The St. Louis Fed explores how workers’ financial resilience and retirement security can be improved by the SECURE Act and four additional policy actions.

The Unemployment Cost of COVID-19: How High and How Long?

Cleveland Fed researchers use flows into and out of unemployment to provide an alternative estimate the unemployment rate over the next year.

Families Most Vulnerable to Income Shock and COVID-19

This podcast with the St. Louis Fed’s Center for Household Financial Stability discuss indicators of financial resilience of households and how they may withstand shocks such as job loss.

Unemployment Claims Monitor

The Atlanta Fed’s interactive Unemployment Claims Monitor provides current data on initial and continued claims for unemployment insurance as well as claimants' demographic data.

Reemploying the Unemployed

Stuart Andreason of the Atlanta Fed discusses options to create a better marriage between the workforce development and unemployment insurance systems to expedite the path to reemployment for individuals affected by the recent economic slowdown.

How to Help Workers Who Can’t Work from Home

Learn about the effects of remote work policies, Short-Time Compensation programs, and other policies to support workers facing reduced hours and potential layoffs.

New tool for employers of low-wage workers

Jennifer Wilding of the Kansas City Fed discusses new resources and tools to help companies attract and retain lower-wage employees.

Tracking Labor Market Developments during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Preliminary Assessment

The labor market effects of the COVID-19 pandemic are tracked with real-time weekly payroll employment data to track both aggregate and industry effects.

Advancing Careers for Low-Income Families

The Atlanta Fed launches a comprehensive initiative on addressing the impact of benefits cliffs on low-income individuals and their incentives to enroll in training for a higher-paying job, work more hours, or advance in their career.

Closing the "Digital Skills Gap" Takes Hard Work from Employers and Employees

The St. Louis Fed discusses the difficulties employers face in finding skilled workers, as well as challenges workers confront when “upskilling” themselves for jobs that complement (but don’t compete with) automation.

What Can Employers Do to Mitigate Hiring Difficulties? Evidence from Online Job Ads*

The Philly Fed uses data from online job ads to understand how employers can improve their ability to fill open job positions.

Which Workers Will Be Most Impacted?

Researchers from the Philly Fed identify the occupations that are most likely to be negatively affected by social distancing practices and then describe the characteristics of the workers holding those jobs.

Benefits Cliffs and the Financial Incentives for Career Advancement: A Case Study of a Health Care Career Pathway

The financial disincentives to career advancement caused by benefits cliffs, which occur when earnings gains are offset by the loss of means-tested public benefits, are explored by researchers from the Atlanta Fed. Two policy interventions are discussed.

New ideas help align two systems: Why is there a disconnect between economic development and workforce systems?

This special brief explores the alignment of economic development and workforce development systems to better foster economic growth and ensure individuals have the education, skills and training needed to meet labor needs.

Exploring Women's Labor Force Participation Amid Uneven Recovery From Recession

Through the period of 2008 (during the recession) to 2011, 5.7 million prime-age individuals—men and women—lost their jobs, and the overall participation rate has not fully recovered. College-educated women overall have fared better than other prime-age workers.

President's Message: Long-Term Trends in the U.S. Labor Force and Implications for Policymakers

Esther George delivered remarks demographic trends are reshaping the U.S. labor force in July at a forum on “the Silver Economy” in Helsinki, Finland.

Demand for Digital Skills Rising: Whether New or Seasoned, Workers Face Increased Need to Keep Current

This special topic brief, recently released as part of the Investing in America’s Workforce (IAW) initiative, explores what challenges and innovative strategies have been used to prepare workers with digital skills for 21st-century jobs.

Opportunity Occupations: Leveraging Jobs that Pay a Good Wage without Requiring a Four-Year College Degree

This mother of three didn't need a four-year degree to land her job and improve her family's life. Learn Jaime's story in this video.

Boston Fed puts working parents at the center of new initiative on child care

Is the Middle Class within Reach for Middle-Income Families

Regional Metros have More--or Less--Opportunity

What's Next? It May Not be College

Saturday night, my son will be attending his first high school prom. A junior, he is starting to hear his friends talk about the big decisions that come with the end of school in May. “What are you planning to do next?”

Too often the answer is college, if only by default. With national completion rates hovering around 60 percent and the rising concern about burdensome student debt, it is time to reconsider the options.

Strenghtening Workforce Development in Rural America

Explore opportunities for rural investments that address issues of labor demand and supply in this special topic brief from the Investing in America’s Workforce initiative.

The Growing Importance of the Services Sector

The growing importance of the services sector in recent decades is explored in this issue of the Rocky Mountain Economist.

Automation and the Future of Work

Promising Workforce Development Approaches

Tenth District development of Fed System Workforce book

Steve Shepelwich, a Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City senior community development advisor, discussed the Federal Reserve System’s new book on workforce development.

Early Childhood Education and the Economy

Why Aren’t U.S. Workers Working?

Research by the San Francisco Fed suggests that policy interventions to reduce the structural barriers that keep many women on the sidelines could bring millions of prime-age Americans into the labor force.

Learn-and-Earn Model Catches On

National Apprenticeship Week is helping build momentum for a model that works.

Investment in Skills Training Is an Investment in the Economy

At a book launch for Investing in America’s Workforce: Improving Outcomes for Workers and Employers, Harker discussed the overarching theme, “that everyone involved in workforce development should start thinking like investors looking for long-term rewards, rather than lenders thinking only about short-term risks.”

Welcoming Remarks at the Investing in America's Workforce Book Launch Event

President Williams discusses the importance of workforce development for sustainable economic growth and example policies and programs. 

Oklahoma Career Expo Week

The Kansas City Fed hosted five events to connect youth with career skills and opportunities during the Oklahoma Career Expo Week, November 12-18.

Regional Firms Struggling to Hire Hourly Workers

New book shares workforce strategies

When a Job Isn’t Enough

“History Has Handed Us an Opportunity” for Systemic Change

Job Growth in Nebraska Continues, Especially for Some Occupations

The Prime-Age Workforce and Labor Market Polarization

Labor Market Conditions highlighted in latest LMI Economic Conditions report

Essential Skills Training for Workforce Staff Launched

Black Women Business Startups

Strategies to Advance Job Quality

The challenges workers face in making a living through their work today and practical approaches that governments, businesses, nonprofits and other civic actors can take to improve the quality of jobs for all who work are detailed by Maureen Conway of the Aspen Institute in this advance chapter from the Federal Reserve’s forthcoming book Investing in America’s Workforce: Improving Outcomes for Workers and Employers.

Stark decline in labor force participation for men 25-54

Next Generation Sector Partnerships: A Series of Case Studies

Regional collaborations of businesses, from the same industry and in a shared labor market region, that work with education, workforce development, economic development and community organizations to address workforce development needs are examined through five case studies.

Podcast: Access to Job Success

Educational Attainment and Labor Market Outcomes in the Rocky Mountain States

Paid Family and Medical Leave: Impact and Implementation

The need for paid family and medical leave programs and the impact they have on businesses, the economy, and the health and well-being of low- and moderate-income workers is explored in the brief from the Boston Fed.

The Opioid Epidemic and Its Effects

Kansas City Fed Labor Market Conditions Indicators

The Kansas City Fed Labor Market Conditions Indicators (LMCI) suggest the level of activity increased modestly and momentum remained high in March. An increase in job leavers made the greatest contributed to activity in the period. 

Job Polarization and the Natural Rate of Unemployment in the United States

A new estimate of the natural rate of unemployment in the United States that accounts for changes in the age, sex, and skill composition of the labor force is explored by Kansas City Fed economist Didem Tuzeman.

How Do Firms Respond to Hiring Difficulties?

The responses of small firms to difficulties in finding workers are examined with new data from the Federal Reserve Bank’s 2017 Small Business Credit Survey. Implications for workforce development practitioners and policymakers are explored.

Engaging Banks in Workforce Development - Webinar 2

Learn how banks and organizations partnering with them can play an important role in workforce development and the economic health of low- and moderate-income communities in this two-part webinar series. 

Engaging Banks in Workforce Development - Webinar 1

Learn how banks and organizations partnering with them can play an important role in workforce development and the economic health of low- and moderate-income communities in this two-part webinar series. 

Tenth District LMI Economic Conditions

Reasons for low labor force participation during periods of tight labor markets and employability programs are explored in this edition of the Kansas City’s biannual review of economic conditions in LMI communities.

Why Are Prime-Age Men Vanishing from the Labor Force?

The drivers and potential consequences of the decline in prime-age men’s participation in the labor market, due in part to job polarization, are explored in this Kansas City Fed Economic Review article.

Opportunity Occupations Monitor

This interactive data tool from the Atlanta Fed identifies well-paying jobs across various educational requirement levels in states and metro areas to help identify employment offering livable wages. 

Workforce Development in Today's Economy

Governor Lael Brainerd discusses the workforce development issues related to skills development programs for youth. 

Bank’s Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) Opportunities

The Philadelphia Fed summarizes innovative activities from banks’ Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) performance evaluations in workforce development and other areas of community development. 

Fed Governor Tours Kansas City's Workforce Initiatives

Governor Brainard gains first-hand look at a Kansas City workforce development initiative to create industry-informed job training programs in the information technology field.

Atlanta Fed’s Center for Workforce and Economic Opportunity

The Atlanta Fed launches new Center for Workforce and Economic Opportunity (CWEO) to make Federal Reserve System resources related to the labor market, employment opportunities, and workforce development accessible to researchers, businesses, and policymakers.

"Investing in America’s Workforce: Report on Workforce Development Needs and Opportunities"

This Federal Reserve System report analyzes information gathered from nearly 1,000 leaders who work at the intersection of workforce training, recruitment, and finance. The study provides a snapshot of the workforce development sector and its key challenges. It offers strategies for improving the human capital of America’s labor force, expanding access to jobs, and innovating workforce development funding.

Investing in America’s Workforce: Overview

The goals and activities of the Federal Reserve System’s national workforce initiative are described in this overview article.

Tenth District LMI Economic Conditions Report Looks at Labor Market

Many respondents in the latest Tenth District LMI Economic Conditions Report commented that ample jobs were available in their areas for LMI workers but that wages were very low and insufficient to support an individual or family—a common ongoing refrain in survey responses. 

Labor Market Disparities and Economic Performance

Governor Brainard discussed the impact of labor market disparities on monetary policy and initiatives aimed at understanding economic disparities and how to foster more-inclusive growth at the Kansas City Fed’s "Banking and the Economy: A Forum for Minority Bankers." 

Work Ethic: The Critical Skills for the 21st Century Workforce

Josh Davies, chief executive officer of The Center for Work Ethic Development, engaged with Oklahoma educators and employers to discuss the core behaviors that define work ethic and soft skills and research-based methods for integrating work ethic development into training and work settings. 

Earning a living: Who’s contributing to the recent increase in wage growth?

Wage growth for workers in the United States has accelerated gradually in the past two years, and a few industries are responsible for the surge.

Dissecting Wage Dispersion

This Economic Review article finds that “where you work” contributes more to residual wage dispersion than “who you are.” 

Government Policy and Labor Productivity

Vice Chairman Fischer discusses the impact of labor productivity on economic growth and policy options for improving innovation, investments and labor quality.

Investing in America’s Workforce: Improving Outcomes for Workers and Employers

This new workforce initiative by the Federal Reserve System and its partners aims to connect businesses, government, nonprofit, and philanthropic organizations to rethink policy and investments, attract new resources, and improve economic mobility for workers. Save the date for the Capstone Conference to be held October 4–6, in Austin, TX. Sign up at www.investinwork.org for updates and to be the first to hear when conference registration opens.

Increasing participation: Workers staying on the job longer

One of the driving forces behind the increase in the labor force participation rate is older workers remaining on the job. The reasons vary for their extended stay, but their presence is an important element in understanding current labor conditions.

Experiences and Perspectives of Young Workers: A Connecting Communities webinar

Listen to experts from the Federal Reserve, the City University of New York (CUNY), and the Aspen Institute in in this edition of the Connecting Communities webinar explore findings from the recent Federal Reserve report on young workers and the labor market which provides a snapshot of the educational attainment, employment experience, job market outlook and financial self-sufficiency of 18- to 30-year-olds.

Assessing Differences in Labor Market Outcomes Across Race, Age and Educational Attainment

Broad indicators are often used to evaluate the health of the labor market but may mask disparities in outcomes across age, education, gender, and race. This paper summarizes work the research staff of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City has done to better understand differences in labor market outcomes. Some of these findings reinforce earlier work, while others offer novel perspectives.

Developing Career-Based Training: A Connecting Communities

Advances in technology are fundamentally shifting the demand for labor toward workers who have significant skills. As a result, great potential exists for workers and employers develop more and better career-based training for many middle-skilled positions. Learn of new approaches to developing such training programs in the recently released Atlanta Fed ebook, Developing Career-Based Training. 

The Rise of Underemployment: Supporting the Needs of Low-Income Workers

This paper from the San Francisco Fed summarizes existing research on the topic of underemployment, discusses themes that surfaced during the locally focused meetings, and proposes ways to address the underlying causes through solutions that build on the interrelated nature of housing, jobs, transportation and child care.

Tenth District LMI Economic Conditions

Most indicators of economic and financial conditions in the LMI community have rebounded from the previous survey, but more consistent improvement is needed to make a definitive judgment on the long-term trend of LMI economic conditions. 

Addressing Workforce Development Challenges in Low-Income Communities

Chair Yellen reviews workforce development initiatives and their importance given the significant job market changes in recent years, brought about by global competition and technological advances, and the new and shifting skills that these changes demand.

Putting the Community Reinvestment Act to Work

Banks can play an important role in building a strong workforce for their local economy. A new resource from the Federal Reserve Banks of Dallas and Kansas City, Engaging Workforce Development: A Framework for Meeting CRA Obligations, provides banks, and organizations interested in partnering with them, information and tools to engage in workforce development activities.

Stuck in Part-Time Employment

Jonathan Willis of the Kansas City Fed finds that although the share of workers employed part time for economic reasons has declined, it is unlikely to return to its pre-recession level in the near future.

Regional Talent Pipelines: Collaborating with Industry to Build Opportunities in Texas

The Dallas Fed explores how regional workforce development systems can connect lower-skilled workers to opportunities for advancement in a changing labor market.

Investing in the Frontline: A Lesson from the Health Care Sector (webinar)

The Kansas City Fed discusses how an employer-led national collaboration of health care leaders promotes employer investment in the skill and career development of frontline health care workers.

Experiences and Perspectives of Young Workers

The experiences and expectations of 18- to 30-year-old Americans entering the labor market are explored in this research report from the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors.

The Evolution of Work: A conference by the New York Fed

The New York Fed hosted “The Evolution of Work,” a conference to explore how the nature of work is evolving, including the expanding role of technology, shifts in employee work arrangements and employer-employee relationships, and the effects of these changes on workforce and community development strategies. Governor Brainard provided a speech on the implications of the growth of contingent work. The conference was co-sponsored by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Freelancers Union.

What is Behind the Recent Increase in Labor Force Participation?

Kansas City Fed economists find that the recent increase in labor force participation is not due to more workers entering the labor force, but to fewer workers exiting it.

Putting Your Paycheck to Work Infographics

Two new infographics are available for employers and financial educators on how to make the most of your paycheck.

Improving Job Quality for Lower-Wage Workers: An interview with Steven Dawson

Steven Dawson discusses opportunities for improving job quality and economic opportunities for lower-wage workers grounded in his current work as a Visiting Fellow at The Pinkerton Foundation and consultant with workforce development practitioners and funders.

Building Ladders and Raising the Floor: Improving Employment and Economic Opportunities for Frontline Workers

The Kansas City Fed, in partnership with the Aspen Institute's Economic Opportunities Program, hosted a discussion of the importance and advantages to both workers and employers for shifting our employment and workforce strategies to focus on "building ladders and raising the floor." See videos from the forum here.

Tenth District LMI Economic Conditions Report

Labor markets for LMI households are examined in this edition of the Tenth District LMI Economic Conditions Report.

Economics in the Community Context: Underemployment

This paper from the San Francisco Fed explores the issue of underemployment and its impact on lower-income households and communities.

Beyond CRA: Meaningful Collaborations between Financial Institutions and Workforce Entities

The New York Fed and Boston Fed explored how the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) and Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WOIA) serve as unique opportunities for financial institutions and workforce entities to explore mutual goals and develop partnerships.

The Create Jobs for USA Program

The Boston Fed reviews the role of Community Development Financial Institutions in creating new jobs. 

Two-Generation Strategies for Workforce Development

The evolving practice of two-generation strategies for leveraging workforce development, education and social services to move families out of poverty was discussed at the Exploring Financial Resiliency and Mobility Conference.

Federal Reserve and the Center for Popular Democracy Listening Session (video)

Federal Reserve officials meet with the Center for Popular Democracy's Fed Up campaign in Jackson Hole, Wyoming to discuss its members’ challenges in the labor market and other issues.

Addressing Employment Needs through Sector Partnerships: Case studies from across the Federal Reserve's Fourth District

Five sector-based partnerships are explored in this set of case studies from the Cleveland Fed.

Where can the participation rate go from here?

After a long stretch of declines since the Great Recession, labor force participation has risen in recent months, mainly due to an increase in highly educated workers re-entering the workforce.

FinTech Internship Program offers opportunity, enrichment and mobility

The Boston Fed profiles an initiative that supports upward social and economic mobility of Greater Boston’s low- and moderate-income youth.

Cascade focuses on workforce development

The Philadelphia Fed explores workforce development strategies, including apprenticeships, and financial capability, in its Summer edition of Cascade.

Workforce development addressed in new Community Reinvestment Act guidance

New interagency guidance on the CRA clarifies workforce development, job creation and economic development activities.

My Future, MyRA

Retirement options expand for workers with this individual retirement savings account.

Tackling Poverty, Two Generations at a Time

Watch Workforce Development Webinars On Demand

‘Build Ladders and Raise the Floor’ at Oklahoma Works Conference

The Kansas City Fed sponsored an opening plenary session on strategies for improving the employment outcomes of lower-wage, frontline workers at Oklahoma’s annual workforce conference. Vickie Choitz of the Aspen Institute provided an overview presentation of the rationale and strategies for improving job quality.  Panelists from The SOURCE, Chicagoland Workforce Funder Alliance and High Plains Community Health Center discussed their experiences in improving job quality and its effects on workers and employers.

Financing Workforce Development in a Devolutionary Era

New research from the Atlanta Fed explores several promising alternative financing models for workforce development programs, such as social impact bonds and income-share agreements.

Moving Sectoral & Career Pathway Strategies from Promise to Scale: A Policy and Practice Lecture sponsored by the Oklahoma Department of Human Services and the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City

Models for Labor Market Intermediaries

Transforming U.S. Workforce Development Policies for the 21st Century: Book Launch Event

Improving Employment Outcomes for Lower-Wage Workers

Identifying Opportunity Occupations in the Nation’s Largest Metropolitan Economies

NexStep: Bridging the Employment Gap

Improving the Quality of Jobs through the Public Workforce System

Raise the Floor, Build the Ladder: Good Jobs for New Mexico's Workforce

Signs of Improvement in Prime-Age Labor Force Participation

Reforming Workforce Development Policies for American Workers

Transforming U.S. Workforce Development Policies for the 21st Century: A Conference Overview

Labor Market Dynamics and Monetary Policy

Chair Janet Yellen discusses the implications of labor market dynamics and monetary policy at the Kansas City Fed's Economic Symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

Creating better healthcare jobs explored in national audioconference

Strategies for improving low-wage jobs and their outcomes on economic mobility and financial stability through the lens of the frontline healthcare sector are discussed in this audioconference.

Listening to Caregivers

Investing in People as an Economic Growth Strategy

Jeffrey Lacker, president of the Richmond Fed, discusses long-run strategies to improve labor market outcomes.

Workforce Development and the CRA explored in national audioconference

A survey of workforce development professionals suggests that the Community Reinvestment Act can be a useful resource to support workforce outcomes. An overview of the CRA and steps workforce leaders can take to engage banks are discussed in this presentation.

Richmond Fed President discusses Skills, Inequality and Mobility Richmond

Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker discusses the role of workforce development programs, especially those targeted at youth, on issues of skills development, inequality and mobility.

Building a Resilient Workforce

Dennis Lockhart, president of the Atlanta Fed, discusses building a workforce that can adapt to changing economic realities in opening remarks at the 2013 Community Development Research Conference.

Employer and Lower-Wage Employee Perspectives on Training and Advancement

This jobs-related podcast discusses the value and a role for both the employee and employer in developing and enhancing the skill sets of lower-wage workers.

Governor Raskin addresses challenges facing LMI Workers

Governor Sarah Bloom Raskin addresses labor markets and workforce development challenges at the National Community Reinvestment Coalition Annual Conference.

Kansas City Fed brings experts together to address the future of workforce development

Go inside the key issues impacting workforce development. Learn more about the need for public and private partnerships, the impact of demographic changes, and the role of self-employment.

Power in Partnerships: Addressing Workforce Development Challenges

The Atlanta Fed’s jobs-related podcast discusses the importance of public, private and philanthropic partnerships in addressing local and regional workforce challenges.

Leveraging the Community Reinvestment Act to Advance Workforce Development

Steve Shepelwich discusses ways workforce professionals can expand partnerships with banks to create complementary programs with Ron Painter, CEO of the National Association of Workforce Boards.