As Wisconsin continues to see historically low unemployment rates, employers are looking to the state to help find workers to fill vacancies.
Department of Workforce Development deputy secretary Christopher Hagerup says Wisconsin needs to look outside the box to find workers to fill vacant jobs. “That creates an opportunity for us and for employers in the state to think differently about employees.”
A new mobile jobs unit will be used to travel across Wisconsin and the Midwest, and reach people looking for jobs who might be able to reach brick and mortar job centers, or who aren’t aware of job opportunities in Wisconsin. “We’re looking everywhere we can for employees that Wisconsin companies are going to need in the decades to come,” says Hagerup.
Hagerup says that includes people currently in prison who will be released soon. “We know historically that people leaving prison who have a job lined up are far less likely to be recidivists.”
“We can’t leave any skilled talent on the sidelines, including individuals who are already living in our communities and don’t have easy access to employment and training services,” Governor Walker said. “The mobile job center will help us reach more people and provide greater access to the training needed to fill good-paying jobs.”
The whole effort is part of an overall $6.8 million package that will combine the efforts of Departments of Tourism, Veterans Affairs, and Workforce Development to make Wisconsin as attractive as possible to workers.