Overview
Human capital development—or people’s ability to acquire skills and knowledge through education and training—advances workers’ economic opportunity and strengthens employers and the economy. Yet the complex landscape of skills and training is fragmented across institutions of higher education, public and private providers, and other credentialing programs. More importantly, human capital development alone does not lead to greater economic mobility, as many workers continue to face barriers to reaching their full potential in the labor market.
Working Knowledge
Economic context
November 22, 2022
Article
How Can the Forces of Change Be Harnessed to Create an Inclusive and Equitable Labor Market?
Greater public and private investment in job training, policies to support unionization, and efforts to close digital divides are core strategies for transforming risks from climate change and automation into opportunity, noted experts at the WorkRise October conference.
Skills and training
April 08, 2022
Article
How Randomized Evaluations Build Evidence to Inform Workforce Program Design, Policy, and Investment
Four takeaways from J-PAL North America and WorkRise joint panel on the power of randomized controlled trials in generating evidence to inform and guide decisionmaking and investment in workforce training.
Job search and matching
April 08, 2022
Changemaker Q&A
How “Netflix for Jobs” Is Unlocking Economic Mobility: A Q&A with Scott Jensen
Chief executive officer and vice president of external affairs for Research Improving People's Lives shares insights on how data, science, and technology can identify promising employment and training opportunities for jobseekers looking to earn more or gain new skills.
Research
Skills and training
Report
Last updated on August 27, 2024
Supporting Youth Economic Mobility through Employment-Focused Strategies
WorkRise’s new landscape research report on youth economic mobility reviews the evidence of programs and practices that help young workers succeed and advance in the labor market.
WorkRise Research
Skills and training
Executive Summary
November 15, 2023
The Workforce Almanac: A System-Level View of US Workforce Training Providers
The Workforce Almanac, a first-of-its-kind effort to understand workforce training at a systemwide level is a an open-source directory of nearly 17,000 workforce training providers across the United States. This database offers the most comprehensive view to date of US workforce training providers and includes information such as provider names, locations, and types.
Grantee Research
Skills and training
Executive Summary
April 03, 2023
Navigating Public Job Training
Right now, more than 75,000 Eligible Training Provider (ETP) job programs are eligible for funding under America’s primary federal workforce development law, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). How well do these public investments prepare workers for high-quality jobs? In this analysis, authors combine training provider and program data from the US Department of Labor with performance records and occupational data to study the types of providers receiving WIOA funding and the kinds of jobs for which they offer training. The report also reviews websites for all 50 states to understand how easily potential job trainees can access information on these programs.
Grantee Research
Social determinants of work
Report
March 15, 2022
Implications of Providing Child Care Assistance to Parents In Education and Training
New WorkRise research uses microsimulation to model a hypothetical policy scenario where more parents in education and training were eligible for and received public child care subsidies.
Grantee Research
Social determinants of work
March 15, 2022
Expanding Child Care Subsidies to Parents in Education and Training
A fact sheet summarizes findings from a new WorkRise report that models a hypothetical policy scenario where more parents in education and training were eligible for and received public child care subsidies.
Grantee Research