Maryland is expected to face shortages of workers to fill jobs requiring more than a high school diploma but less than a college degree - jobs that will make up the biggest share of openings over the next several years, according to a national study to be released today.
The state has a widening gap between work force credentials and the so-called "middle skills" needed for jobs that will account for 42 percent of all openings by 2016, reported the Washington-based National Skills Coalition, a worker training advocacy group. The coalition projects more than 434,000 job openings in that category by then.
Such jobs include police officers, firefighters, medical technicians and therapists, electricians and mechanics. Nearly half of the jobs in Maryland are classified as "middle skill," but just over one-third of Maryland workers likely have the minimum credentials to fill them, the report said.
The coalition has reported similar findings in each of the handful of states it has studied since 2007, when it released a national study that mirrored training versus job growth patterns.
"Even as the job numbers get worse, the situation still continues - there are still employers looking for people to fill jobs," said Jessie Hogg Leslie, a senior regional field director for the coalition. "Even in states that have high-skilled jobs, about half the jobs are still middle skills."
The findings will be unveiled during an event today with Gov. Martin O'Malley, who is expected to announce plans to help workers navigate a network of existing training programs and funding. During the event at Prince George's Community College in Largo, O'Malley plans to discuss access to education and training beyond high school.
The goal is to create a "larger and better talent pool for Maryland businesses, as it relates to the recovery," said Eric Seleznow, executive director of the Governor's Workforce Investment Board, a policy advisory board under the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation.
"More and more jobs are requiring certificates, credentials or degrees," Seleznow said. "We want people to go get credentials, get a skill. When the economy starts to rebound, there will be more of these jobs that require these skills."
