This summer, National Skills Coalition began exploring a pretty big question about the future of skills training and workforce development: What do we actually want to see? If we had the opportunity to dream and imagine from scratch an ideal future of skills training and work, what would it look like? That question is at the heart of the A New Promise of Work, a national initiative to bring together workers, learners, business leaders, workforce leaders, policymakers, and others to help shape a bold new workforce vision where everyone can thrive.
That’s why, this summer, I along with the Voices for Skills team, talked with more than 50 workers and learners across the country both virtually and in person. They included people working in or training for careers in fields like healthcare, IT and cybersecurity, construction and the trades, manufacturing, education, and community-based work. Some were just starting out; others were changing careers or returning to school after years away; and many were balancing education and training with work, caregiving, and other responsibilities. We asked people to think big and to imagine an ideal world of education, skills training and work that would actually allow people to thrive.
For me, these conversations were powerful and energizing. At a time when it can be easy to focus on everything that feels challenging or uncertain, people showed up ready to dream. They came with ideas, passion, and a real interest in being part of building something better.
Across the conversations, workers and learners described something bigger than just better access to the workforce system we already have. They talked about a workforce and education vision that feels less fragmented and does not expect people to navigate every decision and challenge on their own. They envisioned lifelong, navigable pathways where people could explore careers, learn without taking on unsustainable risk, translate their skills into good work, continue learning, advance or change directions when they want or need to, and have enough stability to make real choices about their lives.
There were a few themes that stood out to me:
Workers and learners were not asking for more training just for the sake of training. They wanted education and training that clearly connects to good jobs, better wages, opportunities to advance, and long-term career opportunities. Throughout our conversations, people talked about paid work-based learning, stronger connections between employers and training programs, clear career pathways, affordable credentials and certifications, and being able to understand what an opportunity will actually lead to before investing their time or money. One participant described earning a paralegal certificate only to find that employers still would not consider him because he lacked experience. Reflecting on that experience, he said we shouldn’t be setting people up to fail.
People are already taking risks when they decide to go back to school, complete a credential, enter an apprenticeship, or pursue a new career. They may be giving up work hours, spending money, figuring out childcare, or trying to balance training with everything else happening in their lives. Just giving someone access to a training program is not enough. People need to be able to see where that training leads and have confidence that their investment has a shot at paying off.
Another thing we heard clearly is that access does not mean much if the system ignores everything happening around a person. Workers and learners imagined education and training designed around the realities of people’s lives rather than expecting people to constantly rearrange their lives around the system.
Affordability is vitally important, but it’s only part of what makes education and training truly accessible. It must include whether someone can physically get to their program. Whether they can find childcare. Whether they can continue earning an income while learning. Whether they have stable housing and enough food. Whether they can take care of their mental health and whether there is someone who can help them navigate a system that can often be incredibly complicated. In the vision people shared with us, childcare, transportation, financial support, career navigation, mental health resources, and other supports are fundamental to what makes opportunity possible. One participant brought that need to life when she described trying to return to school after being away for a decade. A transcript hold sent her back and forth between different offices for months, with no clear answer about how to fix it. Eventually she was connected to a caseworker, Deborah, who resolved the problem in two days. When we asked what a better system would look like, she said simply, “everyone would have a Deborah.”
And that support can’t disappear the moment someone finishes a program. Workers and learners talked about needing help moving from training into a good job, continuing to build their skills, and figuring out what comes next in their careers. In the vision they described, lifelong learning opportunities not only open doors but help people get through the door and continue moving forward in their careers.
Something that stuck with me through these conversations was the desire for work (regardless of the industry or occupation) to be grounded in dignity and to recognize people’s value. Workers and learners talked about wanting to be seen for what they can contribute, rather than only through a degree, a resume, a certification, a record, or some other screening mechanism. We heard both frustration with current hiring systems that overlook people’s skill potential and a desire for employers to be more willing to recognize people’s ability and willingness to learn.
Workers wanted employers to invest in their development, provide opportunities to advance, and pay wages that allow people to live. They wanted workplaces where people do not feel disposable. One participant connected that vision directly to her own experience, saying businesses can hire and keep workers by creating an environment where they “feel respected, where they feel valued, and have [opportunities] to learn.”
This theme stood out to me the most. Across the conversations, the ideas of agency and power kept showing up.
First, people want greater agency over their own careers. People wanted information that helped them understand their options. They wanted the freedom to change direction without feeling like they had failed. They did not want to be trapped by one credential, one employer, or one career path.
People talked about wanting the knowledge and confidence to advocate for themselves and having enough information to make meaningful choices about their careers and futures. In one conversation, workers talked about the idea of being able to vet employers rather than thinking only about employers vetting workers.
Workforce development advocates spend a lot of time asking, “How do we prepare people to meet the needs of employers.” But workers should also be able to ask: is this a workplace where I can grow? Is this somewhere I want to work?
But agency over their own careers was only part of it. Workers and learners also wanted power in the systems that shape their lives. They wanted to be heard.
I think that’s such an important reminder for workforce advocates as we think about the future we want to build. Yes, we need to build better programs and policies for workers and learners. But workers and learners should also have meaningful influence over how training programs, workplaces, policies, and career pathways are designed and evaluated. A bold vision for workforce development would put workers and learners at the center, not just as beneficiaries of the system, but as people with ideas, aspirations, expertise, agency, and power.
What we heard throughout these conversations was a desire for a system that responds to people’s needs, goals, and passions. A system that gives people room to explore and change. One that does not drop people when life happens but continues to support and nurture them. One where people are treated fairly and with dignity. And one that provides enough security, stability, information, confidence, and agency for people to make real choices about their futures. The promise is more than just connecting someone to a training program or filling an open job. The promise is bigger, bolder, inclusive and meaningful. That’s what we need to work toward.
As we move into the next phase of the New Promise of Work, we will take what we heard across these conversations and begin pulling together the larger themes and policy ideas that emerged. Just as importantly, we will bring those ideas back to the workers and learners we talked with this summer to make sure we captured what they told us and the vision they want to see.
