Catherwood LibraryILR School

Bipartisan discussions in Washington are in agreement that the American workforce needs significant help in learning new skills in order to deal with an economy that is increasingly dependent on digital technology. Workers have already worried for years that an increasing amount of automation would remove jobs, while requiring an advanced skill set in order to perform tasks related to automation. The Covid-19 pandemic led to half of Americans working from home by May, an increase of 15 percent from before. Executives and advisors are advising the current administration that unprecedented investments in the current workforce are needed. There is support in Congress for a $4000 training credit, and other organizations have suggested federally funded accounts of up to $15,000 for workers to use for training. Past recessions have always resulted in increased investment into training programs, which then decreased when the recession was over. Labor experts believe that it needs to be a national priority that businesses not only invest in their workers but that the federal government encourages businesses to do so by offering tax credits.