Building on the premise in the State of the City Address that it is more effective to work together than in isolation, the Tucson City Council unanimously agreed to renew its commitment to working withPimaCountyto grow the talent pipeline companies need.

Councilwoman Regina Romero noted economic development efforts must be looked at holistically, with an appreciation for the role that job training plays in building a healthy economy, even as the City moves forward with other tenets of its recovery plan.

“We do look forward to strengthening our partnership withPimaCountyto lift people out of poverty and prepare people for higher-wage jobs,” Romero said, encouraging colleagues to reinforce their current participation in job training efforts and appoint a city liaison for the Pima County One-Stop program.

Dorothee Harmon, who seeks grants and new partnerships to build the One-Stop program, said there is a strong connection between skills and earning for not only employed adults, but for young people entering the workforce and for veterans re-entering the civilian workforce. “We know at a macro level that access to skilled talent is essential to economic competitiveness,” she said in a presentation to the Council.

Part of One-Stop’s function is to prepare qualified workers for jobs in the local economy. Of the nearly 16,000 job seekers who utilized One-Stop last fiscal year, 80 percent of them were city residents who were able to chase down job leads, get help with resumes or obtain additional training. Nearly 800 local businesses hired One-Stop clients, demonstrating robust engagement from the private sector.

Another aspect of One-Stop, however, is its direct work with businesses in identifying gaps and shortcomings in the labor market. A group of 22 machinist companies, for example, is working with One-Stop to address the shortage of machinists in the community, said the One-Stop’s Jim Mize – a retired Raytheon human resources executive.

Mize reflected on the importance of inter-agency coordination and non-duplication from the point of view of employers, saying collaboration builds a more integrated approach to services and helps reinforce relationships with employers.

Workforce training is an integral part of the Pima County Economic Development plan. To review the plan in its entirety, please visit http://www.pima.gov/administration/documents/pdfs/PC_ED_Action_Plan_2012-10-17.pdf

To watch the presentation at the Feb. 20 study session on Tucson12.tv, please visit

http://www.tucson12.tv/programs/MayorandCouncil/index.php?view=MSS022013lo&p=1&viewhi=MSS022013hi&p=1 and click on Part 1.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 26th, 2013 at 8:11 am and is filed under Economic Development, One-Stop Career Center, Pima County, Southern Arizona, Tucson. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.