September 5th, 2008
The mission of the Boone and Winnebago Counties Workforce Investment Board is to create a competitive, skilled and educated workforce by providing a system for the citizens of Boone and Winnebago Counties to gain meaningful employment responsive to the needs of business.
The Workforce Connection is a partnership of state and federally funded employment and training programs, economic development agencies and educational entities committed to providing a workforce that meets the needs of our business community, now and in the future.
The One-Stop Centers in Rockford and Belvidere provide one contact for employers to find workers and for jobseekers
to receive training, education and employment services.
For more information, contact John Strandin:
Phone: 815-395-6600
Fax: 815-395-8548
jstrandin@theworkforceconnection.org
September 5th, 2008
Today’s Letter to the Editor states two issues; one that I agree with….”Rockford is an undiscovered gem…..”
http://www.rrstar.com/opinions/letters/x1001334524/Explore-new-industries
And one that I disagree with…”city’s unemployment rate around 10% because of the foundering manufacturing sector….”
I don’t know where the author got his facts, but from those that I see, many of those unemployed are in the services and construction industries, not manufacturing. It’s even not fair to put the Chrysler situation into the big hat of manufacturing and then say the same thing. While Chrysler is an important contributor of employment in manufacturing, they mske up a small % of total manufacturing employment. Facts: this region employs around 33,000 manufacturing people and has over 1,000 manufacturing companies, many employing 100 or fewer people. Many that I know are always looking for skilled workers, many are doing very well in their sales and most are hard working, family or personally owned. They don’t need comments such as the one from the Letter published today.
