Skills of the trade: Utah's disconnect between education and industry needs.

• Author: Kennedy, Linda T.
• Position: Feature - Education

Next month, thousands of high school students will wear graduation caps and gowns, receive diplomas and plan their freshmen year at Utah's universities. But according to some state education officials and economists, only 25 percent of those students will land the high-skill, high-wage occupation they'll work four-plus years in college to obtain.

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The reason, experts say, is that Utahns don't want to accept the fast, dramatic changes the technology evolution is creating in almost every industry, and how those changes are affecting occupational skill requirements not only in Utah's job market, but in the nation's and the world's.

"Parent's attitudes and perceptions greatly influence their children's career and education choices," observes John T. Mathews, labor market economist at the Utah Department of Workforce Services (DWS). "Parents want their kids to be successful in life. They measure [success] using the preconception that more education, notably a bachelor's degree, will ensure their son's or daughter's economic survival, and with that education they, the parents, won't have to worry about their future."

The results though, some experts say, are secondary education curriculum emphasizing college-prep courses and less vocational exposure. This leads to high school students either dropping out or entering the workforce without post-secondary education and creating a drain on the state's economy. Dave Sorenson, executive director of the Manufacturing Extension Partnership, says manufacturing is one industry in Utah suffering from a lack of workers with the new skills of the trade.

THE SKILL GAP

"Out of the 3,900 manufacturers in the state, about 450 go out of business every year," Sorenson says, adding that happens for a variety of reasons, including companies not having adequately trained labor or the resources to utilize improved processes and retrain their personnel.

Of the 20 industry sectors that cover all aspects of Utah's economy, manufacturing is one of the largest, employing more than 100,000 workers. Sorenson says manufacturing jobs pay 143 percent of the average wages of the other three major industries: retail, education and health care. He adds that about 10 years ago, manufacturing was approximately 12 percent of the economy. Now, as companies are closing their doors, it's about 10 percent of the economy.

"In Utah, 84 percent of our exports are manufactured goods," says Sorenson. "The more we diminish that, the more we risk our balance of trade, which will diminish our wealth in the state."

While many of Utah's manufacturers have 40 employees or less, Utah's large manufacturer's also struggle to connect new processes with skilled labor.

Tom Bingham, president of Utah's Manufacturing Association and chairman of the board of the Salt Lake Tooele Applied Technology College, says one of Utah's top leading manufacturers (name withheld) was "very alarmed" they could not get appropriate training for skilled maintenance people. The company employs more than 2,000 people. "They said, 'We need training now because we have realized that our entire...