Witness urges centers of manufacturing excellence to tackle robotics workforce shortage
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Summary
Witness testimony at a Joint Economic Committee hearing described widespread difficulty hiring machinists, welders and assemblers and proposed revamping the MEP program into 'centers of manufacturing excellence' to partner with community colleges and trade schools.
A witness at a Joint Economic Committee hearing said manufacturers across the country are struggling to fill skilled trades jobs needed to expand robotics and manufacturing, and proposed a national push to build training centers.
A committee member referenced a Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit that announced $92,000,000,000 in investment in the state and asked about the labor needed to meet that demand. The witness said, "it's very hard to hire for manufacturing today," naming machinists, welders and assembly workers, and proposed creating "centers of manufacturing excellence" to "redo the MEP program" and partner with community colleges and trade schools.
The witness said the centers would allow workers and companies to "see all the latest equipment" and learn from experts; the witness added that some firms are building their own training programs because the necessary talent is not available in the current labor pool.
No formal actions or votes were taken during this exchange.