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Are there any retraining programs that have more than a 50% success rate? Has retraining ever been a realistic option for job loss? Seems more likely the next g

Are there any retraining programs that have more than a 50% success rate? Has retraining ever been a realistic option for job loss? Seems more likely the next generation would make up for the lost jobs on paper

beat 8y ago
Nope. Retraining has never worked. Yang is quite explicit about that.
- eghad 8y ago
  And he's wrong. Retraining has been effective in several European nations like Germany, Sweden, and Switzerland, especially for older adults (there's a reason even DeVos and Trump name drop them). The fundamental difference (from the US programs attempted in the past) primarily lies in the amount of money per worker spent and the level of state control/centralization. Furthermore, companies there seem actively enthusiastic about ensuring they have a skilled population pool in the future regardless of the short term ROI. Personally I think the 2017 tax cuts should be rolled back for a lot of industries and used as an incentive for companies to develop proper apprenticeship programs and collaborate with universities/community colleges/trade schools to teach the exact skills they're looking for.
notfromhere 8y ago
People don't have that kind of elasticity on skills, the ability to retrain a 20 year old and 50 year old are very different
elliekelly 8y ago
I always hear about these “retraining programs” but I’ve never met anyone who has done one. Where do these programs even happen? What are they training people to do? Is it offered to people who file for unemployment or meant to be more proactive?
- abecode 8y ago
  I teach data science at a masters programs (University of St Thomas graduate programs in software in the twin cities) and we have some students who are part of retraining programs. Apparently if a big company lays off a significant chunk of workforce and off-shores it, there are programs funded through corporate taxes that the laid off workers can use to go to school. The students in my anecdotal experience (2 semesters so far) are pretty good. I think there must be more than one such program because some students required a sign off from me but others didn't. It's just a few students that I know of so it's not a super large scale but it's nice to know that such programs exist at least.
  - elliekelly 8y ago
    Very interesting, thanks for sharing. I'm pleasantly surprised to hear the programs include such high-level courses.

beat 8y ago

Nope. Retraining has never worked. Yang is quite explicit about that.

eghad 8y ago
And he's wrong. Retraining has been effective in several European nations like Germany, Sweden, and Switzerland, especially for older adults (there's a reason even DeVos and Trump name drop them). The fundamental difference (from the US programs attempted in the past) primarily lies in the amount of money per worker spent and the level of state control/centralization. Furthermore, companies there seem actively enthusiastic about ensuring they have a skilled population pool in the future regardless of the short term ROI. Personally I think the 2017 tax cuts should be rolled back for a lot of industries and used as an incentive for companies to develop proper apprenticeship programs and collaborate with universities/community colleges/trade schools to teach the exact skills they're looking for.

notfromhere 8y ago

People don't have that kind of elasticity on skills, the ability to retrain a 20 year old and 50 year old are very different

elliekelly 8y ago

I always hear about these “retraining programs” but I’ve never met anyone who has done one. Where do these programs even happen? What are they training people to do? Is it offered to people who file for unemployment or meant to be more proactive?

abecode 8y ago
I teach data science at a masters programs (University of St Thomas graduate programs in software in the twin cities) and we have some students who are part of retraining programs. Apparently if a big company lays off a significant chunk of workforce and off-shores it, there are programs funded through corporate taxes that the laid off workers can use to go to school. The students in my anecdotal experience (2 semesters so far) are pretty good. I think there must be more than one such program because some students required a sign off from me but others didn't. It's just a few students that I know of so it's not a super large scale but it's nice to know that such programs exist at least.
- elliekelly 8y ago
  Very interesting, thanks for sharing. I'm pleasantly surprised to hear the programs include such high-level courses.