200,000 WEST VIRGINIANS SEEKING RETRAINING IN '04 - Their Jobs No Longer Exist

(10/11/2004)

West Virginia's monthly unemployment numbers do not reflect the actual loss of employment in the state. In fact, with a few exceptions, the unemployment numbers often used by politicians look pretty good. Workers whose jobs no longer exist - the lack of opportunity to work - is at the root of the problem. New job creation in West Virginia is mostly in the service sector, such as WalMart, the state's largest employer, and fast food. Nearly 200,000 laid-off West Virginia workers applied for retraining under the Workforce Investment Act this year alone (2004) about 50,000 more than last year, according to the state Development Office. Re-training is often for skills for which no jobs are available. The demand is increasing at a far greater rate than the ability to deliver the re-training. Federal funding for re-training is at $21 million, less than half what it was when the Workforce Investment Act went into place four years ago. Workforce Investment leaders say more cuts are coming next year. West Virginia lost more aid because unemployment rates here actually looked good, compared with other states. Additionally, there have been administrative problems in some regions with their Workforce Investment Boards, leading to cuts in re-training funds.

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