Nearly 300,000 workers employed in 2017
FRANFORT, Ky. (Aug. 31, 2017) – Employment levels for workers in lightweighting-related occupations have exceeded pre-recession levels with over 285,000 Kentucky workers employed in that field as of Q2 2017 – this according to a new report from LIFT – Lightweight Innovations For Tomorrow.
Additionally, the report states that demand for workers in the commonwealth remains strong with 42 percent more online job postings than four years ago.
The quarterly reports, highlighting the employment trends, top jobs, and required skills in advanced manufacturing through Q2 2017, are completed with research and analysis from the Workforce Intelligence Network of Southeast Michigan (WIN) and cover LIFT’s initial region, including Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky and Tennessee, home to more than 50 percent of the metalworking jobs in the country.
The top in-demand lightweighting-related occupations in Kentucky in Q2 2017 were: Laborers and Freight, Stock and Material Movers (1,160 postings), Maintenance and Repair Workers (1,039 postings), Production Workers (544 postings), First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers (362 postings) and Production, Planning and Expediting Clerks (276 postings).
“Our state has hit a milestone as advanced manufacturing employment levels have surpassed pre-recession levels, levels we haven’t seen since 2001,” said Mary C. Breeding, president and CEO, Kentucky Foundation for Industry. “Keeping up with demand, as its projected to continue growing, will fall largely on building and preparing a resilient, qualified workforce through education and industry collaboration.”
“While we continue to see manufacturing employment levels rise, it is critically important to ensure we are preparing students and incumbent workers with the right knowledge, skills and abilities to keep our manufacturing industrial base solid and our national security strong,” said Emily DeRocco, education and workforce director, LIFT. “I applaud the Kentucky Association of Manufacturers and its members for focusing their efforts on those goals.”
LIFT, operated by the American Lightweight Materials Manufacturing Innovation Institute (ALMMII) and one of the founding Manufacturing USA institutes, is a public-private partnership dedicated to developing and deploying advanced lightweight metal manufacturing technologies, and implementing education and training programs to better prepare the workforce today and in the future.
The full Kentucky report can be viewed at: http://lift.technology/education-workforce-development/.
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