On Wednesday, April 22, 2015, Center for an Urban Future and NYATEP held Making New York’s Workforce Development System More Accountable,  a symposium on how wage reporting data can help the state measure the success of its workforce development system. 

Speakers:

• Hon. Nily Rozic, State Assemblywoman, NYS Assembly Labor Committee
• Lesley Hirsch, Director, New York City Labor Market Information Service
• Christian González-Rivera, Research Associate, Center for an Urban Future (moderator)
• Melinda Mack, Executive Director, NYATEP
• Dave Pavelchek, Research Manager, Washington State Workforce Training and Education Coordinating Board
• Todd Oldham, Vice President of Economic & Workforce Development, Monroe Community College
• Jeff Sorensen, NYS Department of Labor

In October 2013, Governor Cuomo signed a bill into law that gave local human capital development stakeholders--like workforce agencies and providers, community colleges and school districts--access to the earnings and employment information of people who completed their education, training and job readiness programs. This was a huge step forward for the state’s workforce development system, and will allow individuals and policymakers alike to understand which educational and workforce development programs are producing the best outcomes for participants. With this information, New Yorkers would be able to enroll in the programs that have a proven record of success, while state and local officials could better align limited public resources with the most successful programs.

The Center for an Urban Future and the New York Association of Training and Employment Professionals (NYATEP)'s symposium in Albany explored what investments the state must make so that local workforce providers can effectively use this valuable resource to improve their programs; presented successful case studies from states that are at the forefront of leveraging wage records for evaluation, such as Washington, Florida and Maryland; and ensured that New York, with the billions of dollars it spends every year on education and human capital programs, moves towards a more accountable workforce development system.