Two days after President Barack Obama signed the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act last month, thousands of people were convening in Cincinnati to participate and share their knowledge at the National Urban League’s 2014 conference. With the theme; One Nation Underemployed: Bridges to Jobs and Justice.
The four-day event according to Marc Morial, president and CEO of the National Urban League, the nation’s preeminent thought leaders and influencers from across the country aimed to conceive actionable plans to address the nation’s economic challenges and unemployment and underemployment crisis.
In front of an audience mixed with corporate executives, politicians, professionals, young professionals, youth leaders, college students and volunteers, Morial kicked off the conference with the State of the Urban League Address. Pointing out facts from the 2014 National Urban League State of Black America Report he indicated that there is a consistent two-to-one employment ratio for African-Americans in the main stream.
“Yes,” he said. “In 2014 Blacks are still twice as likely to be unemployed.” He indicated that four of the 10 Metro areas in the nation with some of the highest Black unemployment that over 20 percent are in Ohio. “We cannot hide and the nation cannot hide from continuous underemployment and double digit unemployment as the new norm in our urban communities across the nation. We cannot hide from our responsibility.”
With the signing of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, which President Obama says should help ensure that workers can earn the skills employers are looking for right now, according to Vice President Joseph Biden; Morials concerns are being addressed. During the conference’s Opening Plenary Session Biden the 47th vice president of the United States said that the president and he are rebuilding America. He stated that the economic front is well and that he is optimistic that America is in a better place.
“On this day in 2014 America is in a better position than any other nation in the world to be the leading economy in the 21 century,” he said. Biden pointed out that according to a leading survey company, the Boston Consulting Group that their statistics points out those American companies that are currently invested in China that 54 percent of firms like manufacturing and IT have plans or are considering coming home to America. With more than 668,000 manufacturing jobs created in the last 52 months he said that is good news.
In order for the economy to bounce back and for companies to return to the states, Biden said the president realizes that the infrastructure has to be modernized which means millions of good paying jobs and the need for a highly skilled workforce.
Not negating the fact that education is a key element to success, Biden stressed that in the future thousands of the available jobs will only need a two-year degree or certificate specialization and will carry an average salary of $86,000 annually. He identified jobs in the fields of manufacturing specializing in welding, machinist, and installation of solar panels and electrical workers. The health care industry he said currently is the most vibrant industry in the world and that in the next five and a half years there will be a need for 526,000 registered nurses and because of the aging population there will be a need for 162,000 medical assistants. By the year 2020 he said 1.4 million IT jobs will be needed across the country.
In his final comments, Biden said, “It has to be about jobs, it has to be about opportunity and there has to be jobs to fill in order to meet the needs of our communities. This is a new era. We are better positioned than anybody in the world. The opportunities are there. We have to invest in our infrastructure and the American people.”
Esther Bush, president and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh during the conference kept her focus on situations on a local level. “I am pleased that the chapters from Ohio came together and focused on the Common Core State Standards for education,” she said classifying them as the new equity lens for education. Already involved she said the local chapter has conducted parent circles in North View Heights, East Hills, the City of Duquesne, and the Creative School for Performing Arts and the Urban League Charter School.
“Our goal is to educate the parents on the importance of the Common Core State Standards and that all American children must have the same minimum level of education throughout the country. That everything is equalized,” she pointed out.
Bush was also excited that the signing of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act had been mentioned during the opening address by Morial. She said she is pleased that major dollars are to be utilized to help out of school youth ages 16 to 25.
The conference consisted of panels, workshops, entertainment and networking opportunities and celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act. There was a Youth Leadership Summit, a Small Business Matters Entrepreneurship Summit and the N.U.L. Experience Expo Hall consisting of the career and networking fair.
In charge of one of the most prominent Urban Leagues in the system, Bush stands by their theme of empowering communities and changing lives. She encourages those in need of their services to contact the office by calling 412-227-4802 or stopping by their main office at 610 Wood St., Downtown Pittsburgh.
