Insights and Perspectives

America’s Got the Talent: The U.S. Economy Enters Its Golden Age

Fri, 26 Sep 2025 17:14:38 GMT

America’s Talent Strategy: Building the Workforce for the Golden Age is a framework released in August 2025 by the Trump Administration to equip American workers with skills for future industries, boost national competitiveness, and expand economic opportunity.

The strategy is built around five core pillars:

Industry-Driven Strategies
Worker Mobility
Integrated Systems
Accountability
Flexibility and Innovation

The new framework presents a vision for how the current administration aims to transform the federal government’s approach to workforce development. The strategy defines five strategic pillars that it hopes will equip American workers for the future of work. Additionally, a key tenet of the report shows how our country intends to fight the rise of artificial intelligence within the labor market.

What else does the framework entail? We break down each pillar below:

Increased Focus on Skills Development and Work Based-Learning

An important part of the new framework is co-designing training and apprenticeship programs. In a recent episode of the VOScast Podcast, a show produced by Geographic Solutions in partnership with Workforce180, guest Ron Painter, Principal at Forbes Field Associates, spoke about the importance of skills development and the creation of training programs, especially at the local level.

“We think that it’s going to take tighter collaboration among partners in a region to deliver workforce services and to deliver skill development,” said Painter, on the importance of finding regional partners to create new programs. “It’s going to take all of those organizations in a region to produce that skilled labor force.”

Registered apprenticeships and other work-based learning models will share an equal part of importance in this pillar. Since 2015, the number of apprenticeship opportunities in the U.S. has grown by almost 89%, reaching 678,014 active apprentices in 2025. Maryland, Tennessee, and Missouri, to name a few states, have harnessed the power of apprenticeships in a variety of industries.

In 2022, renewed interest in the practice of apprenticeship had started its ascent towards prominence in employment trends. In February of that year, Geographic Solutions hosted a Pathways to Employment webinar that featured several notable experts in the field, including Indiana Department of Workforce Development’s Associate Chief and Executive Director of Business and Community Engagement, Darrel Zeck.

“Apprenticeships have gained prominence nationally as more employers are recognizing the significance of engaging with the education system to fill their talent needs,” said Zeck, when asked about the impact of work-based learning programs across the Hoosier state at the time.

Zeck’s perspective was later included in a 2024 case study that further examined the apprenticeship’s inclusion in a new era of workforce development.

An Effort to Mobilize Workers

Pillar two of the framework hinges on the critical need for more Americans to be brought into the labor force. It calls for an alternative to the college-for-all approach. And while this pillar is seemingly targeted towards Americans who are reentering the workforce from unemployment or underemployment, another group that should be considered when talking about upward career mobility are those coming home from incarceration.

The North Carolina Department of Adult Correction’s Workforce Development Manager, Torrey Leach, is part of a collaboration between two teams working to provide opportunities to this group of workers before leaving jail or prison. NCJET, or North Carolina Jobs Exploration in Transition, is the employment system that is the fruit of this collaboration. All of this is part of an effort to provide upward mobility for reentry.

“To me, successful reentry means more than just not recidivating,” said Leach in a recent Pathways to Employment webinar. “It means stability, purpose, and community connection.”

Programs that assist veterans as they reenter the civilian workforce highlight the importance of worker mobility. In a similar vein to the work being done by the NC Department of Adult Correction, Chris Silvers serves as a Regional Analyst at the NC Department of Commerce, Division of Workforce Solutions, where he facilitates connections between employers and veterans. Not only is Silvers a veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces, he works closely with programs, such as the state’s Hire Vets Medallions Program, where employers can signify in job listings that they are veteran friendly.

“We list these employers, as well as the job orders on NCWorks.com, so that veterans can see right which ones are veteran friendly right off the bat,” said Silvers.

As new resources become available, Silvers’ team adds them to the website, updating links and adding new employers on a regular basis.

Bringing Together Disparate Information

Integrated systems that streamline and coordinate what the report calls a fragmented web of duplicative programs will be a best practice of the future, according to the new framework.

In 2022, Nebraska became the first state to fully integrate their labor exchange, labor market information, unemployment insurance benefits, tax, and appeals operations into one singular system for heightened accountability and efficiency.

At the time of the launch, Governor Pete Ricketts had this to say: “Our state’s job creators will benefit from having one primary platform where they interact with the Department of Labor rather than navigating multiple websites and systems.”

Iowa has also integrated its workforce and unemployment insurance services, the result of which has led to shortened unemployment durations, a boost in Iowa’s available workforce, and savings to employers in the form of lower unemployment tax rates. At the end of 2024, Iowa ranked third in the nation for the shortest average unemployment claim durations.

In California, a partnership between the California Prison Industry Authority (CALPIA) and the California Employment Development Department (EDD) yielded the Entry to Employment (E2E) Network. This partnership is part of larger integration with the state’s labor exchange system, CalJOBS.

Creating a Level of Accountability Through Reporting

The fourth pillar of the new strategy involves being able to measure results through accountability. Because many programs are funded by taxpayers, this part of the framework aims to ensure training leads to results. Liliya Tanska, Workforce Business Analyst Team Lead for Geographic Solutions’ Reporting Team, described back in 2024 on an episode of the VOScast Podcast why reporting is a critical piece when talking about accountability for workforce programs.

“All of our clients use our reporting services for their strategic planning, for their performance monitoring, and also for understanding and assessing data or program information to improve various aspects of the services they provide,” said Tanska.

Tanska mentioned that she has seen a higher demand in recent years from not only frontline staff members, but senior-level leaders as well, especially when examining how programs are performing, year after year.

“They want to track them and see how those services were utilized and what effect they had on that client. Have they obtained employment, and have they retained in years or business quarters.”

Tanska estimated that in products such as VOS Sapphire AI, there are more than 180,000 different types of reports, when taking into consideration the many ways a user can filter reports.

Prioritizing AI Literacy

This part of the new framework to bring Americans and the labor market into the golden era has the most focus on AI. The report notes that new models of workforce innovation must be created to match the speed and scale of AI-driven economic transformation. The pace of innovation around AI will require new skills, greater agility, and investment in AI literacy.

For Geographic Solutions, the infusion of AI into the VOS Sapphire platform has already led early adopters to see impressive results. Georgia deployed VOS Sapphire AI in December 2024, and Texas followed suit in March 2025. The number of résumés created with generative AI has increased by 70% since then, with a 74% increase in the number of résumés improved using generative AI. In April 2025, VOS Sapphire AI generated more than 2,300 new résumés and enhanced 3,100 others for both staff members and job seekers.

“AI integration has delivered a measurable impact across our workforce programs in Georgia,” said Damon Weller, Assistant Commissioner at WorkSource Georgia, as quoted in Microsoft’s case study that examined the effectiveness of Azure OpenAI.

Entering America’s Golden Hour

As the Trump Administration implements this framework, leaders in workforce development must keep an eye on trends. How will apprenticeship and work-based learning increase or decrease in year-over-year change? Will worker mobilization programs centered around veteran services and reentry employment initiatives thrive? Does a decreased reliance on ‘college for all’ necessarily mean that less individuals will end up attending universities?

And how will the labor market respond to the fast-paced march of AI? Recent reports from Axios and Fortune paint a stark picture. On the other hand, CNBC’s recent reporting on the subject shows less job elimination and more job evolution.

In terms of this new talent strategy framework, reactions have been mixed, with some praise for its forward-thinking goals, and some criticism mainly centered around concerns with implementation, funding, and the potential impact on existing programs.

However this next strategy shakes out, count on Geographic Solutions to be ready to accommodate and be ahead of change. Our VOS Sapphire software suite is constantly evolving to support organizations across the U.S. with meeting new federal guidelines and embracing the future trends of work.

Celebrating Workforce Development Month: Looking Towards A Stronger Workforce for America Act with Promise and Excitement

Tue, 17 Sep 2024 19:41:20 GMT

What is Workforce Development Month?
Every September, Geographic Solutions celebrates Workforce Development Month and recognizes the importance of workforce development initiatives and professionals within the industry. Workforce Development Month was created in 2005 by the National Association of Workforce Development Professionals (NAWDP) to raise awareness about the importance of the workforce industry and highlight the efforts of organizations, policymakers, and professionals committed to helping prepare the labor force to meet the evolving needs of the labor market. NAWDP celebrates Workforce Development Month with initiatives like the ‘Workforce Heroes’ program, which highlights multiple workforce heroes over the course of the month.

A Stronger Workforce for America Act (ASWA) was recently introduced to build on the foundation of, and reauthorize, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), which has been the grounds of workforce development legislation for the past decade. We interviewed Melissa Robbins, CEO of the NAWDP, to gain further insights on the new legislation. Her wisdom offered a valuable perspective on the importance of Workforce Development Month, the promise of ASWA, and the future of the workforce industry.

Understanding A Stronger Workforce for America Act
A Stronger Workforce for America Act (ASWA) was introduced on December 7, 2023, passed by the House of Representatives on April 9, 2024, and will go to the Senate next for consideration. Since then, ASWA has received support from workforce organizations and policymakers, who view it as essential for meeting the changing needs of the labor market. ASWA aims to build upon the existing Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). Signed into law on July 22, 2014, WIOA was the first major reform of the public workforce system since 1998, with the goal of helping job seekers access employment, education, training, and support needed to thrive within the labor market and match employers to skilled workers.

Melissa Robbins shared what she thought to be the biggest challenge in workforce development today and how ASWA addresses that challenge. “I think right now the biggest challenge is to make sure that we’re meeting the needs of businesses and job seekers in the current environment,” said Robbins. “WIOA passed in 2014, so we’re ten years from the last legislation passing, and a lot has happened in those years.”

Robbins added that while the workforce system did a wonderful job adapting, especially during the pandemic when we had to find ways to deliver our programs and services without human contact, that the legislation hasn’t changed. It is imperative that the new legislation focuses on flexibility to meet the changing needs of businesses and job seekers. WIOA’s reauthorization via ASWA aims to modernize education and training programs to better align with current and future job market needs.

Components of A Stronger Workforce for America Act:

Skills Upgrading: Allocate 50% of funds to upskill workers through Individual Training Accounts (ITAs), on-the-job learning, and prioritizing employer-led programs for skill training.
Efficiency and Accountability: Focus on the Eligible Training Provider List to streamline outcomes and ensure that programs align with employers' demands. Fully implement a performance accountability system to hold states and local workforce boards accountable.
Economic Opportunity: Places a greater emphasis on work-based learning for youth, supports reentry programs, and strengthen workforce education programs at community colleges.
Innovation and Hiring: Provide flexibility to states and local workforce boards to modernize their workforce systems and support skills-based hiring practices.

Differences From WIOA:
When asked about the main differences between ASWA and WIOA, Robbins stated that while the new legislation builds on WIOA, it also introduces the following changes:

Focus on Eligible Training Provider List: The new legislation emphasizes the Eligible Training Provider List (ETPL), a public statewide list of qualified training providers eligible for WIOA worker training funds.
Funding: ASWA addresses fund ceilings and floors. WIOA allocates specific percentages to various programs and activities, compared to ASWA, which allows states and local boards to diversify programs and funds.
Flexibility: Overall flexibility for programs so that they can adapt to the changing needs of the industry.

Potential Challenges, Benefits, and Outcomes
Geographic Solutions President, Paul Toomey shared his insights on the benefits of ASWA in a recent Forbes article where he stated, “This legislation’s renewed vision for creating a stronger, more adaptable workforce offers numerous benefits to not only the economy, but also to dislocated, remote, and future generations of workers.”
ASWA will have short and long-term benefits for job seekers and employers. In the short term, changes will allow state and local workforce boards to take on new initiatives that were not previously possible. “Any kind of change in the legislation, there's going to be things that change quickly," said Robbins.

One of the main challenges in implementing ASWA will be ensuring that everyone is trained on the new compliance requirements. Robbins stated, "Just like WIOA, with any new legislation, there's going to be new compliance issues that are going to be black and white, and we have to make sure that they get rolled out to everybody."

She further explained that workforce organizations need to be aware of the complexity of new legislation as it involves hundreds of pages of laws and regulations. Then states and local boards will add their own additional things particular to their area, further complicating compliance requirements. Workforce organizations will need to be prepared to ensure a smooth implementation.

Workforce organizations may also encounter challenges in balancing innovation with compliance while implementing the new legislation. ASWA aims to create innovative strategies and partnerships. Robbins highlighted the need to balance innovation with compliance:

"How do we strategically impact the new innovative ideas on how we're going to implement… the essence of this new legislation," said Robbins.

The role of NAWDP will evolve with the implementation of ASWA, as it has since the early 80’s and adapting to legislative changes and integrating non-traditional workforce partners. Robbins emphasized that NAWDP will remain committed to meeting the needs of its members and the workforce industry.

Supporting Workforce Development for a Stronger Future
Geographic Solutions is dedicated to supporting workforce development initiatives and providing job seekers with the support they need to succeed within the labor market. As workforce legislation and development change, Geographic Solutions remains committed to building a strong and adaptable workforce.

Workforce development takes a collaborative effort between workforce agencies and service providers to close the skills gap, increase job placements, reduce unemployment durations, and ultimately strengthen economic development initiatives. Workforce Development Month gives us a chance to honor those who go to great lengths to positively impact the workforce. We give our thanks to all workforce professionals, the true heart of workforce development.

Click here to watch the whole interview with Melissa Robbins.

What You Need To Know About The CARES Act

Sat, 18 Apr 2020 14:11:00 GMT

The COVID-19 pandemic is sending shockwaves through nearly every facet of our lives. Our economy is experiencing an unprecedented crisis as a record number of Americans are filing first-time jobless claims. But a recent piece of federal legislation called the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act aims to provide relief for those who are temporarily out of work due to furloughs and layoffs.

What is the CARES Act?

The CARES Act was signed into law on March 27, 2020. This crucial piece of legislation provides emergency assistance and healthcare response for individuals, families, and businesses affected by the pandemic. It builds upon previous congressional actions by including provisions for temporary coverage of individuals who have exhausted their entitlement to regular unemployment compensation.

Within the act is the new Federal Pandemic Unemployment Compensation program. As part of this program, eligible individuals who are collecting certain unemployment insurance benefits, including regular unemployment compensation, will receive an additional $600 per week in federal benefits for weeks of unemployment ending on or before July 31, 2020. Rounding out the program, Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation allows those who have exhausted benefits under regular unemployment compensation or other programs to receive up to 13 weeks of additional benefits.

Ultimately, these elements of the act provide up to 39 weeks of benefits, and these benefits are available beginning on or after January 2020 and ending on or before December 31, 2020.

Is There Assistance for Those in the Gig Economy?

Typically, part-time employees, gig workers, seasonal workers, and the self-employed aren’t able to take advantage of unemployment compensation benefits. The CARES Act provides for these workers through Pandemic Unemployment Insurance, which aims to help those who lost work as a direct result of COVID-19 through the end of the year.

Those who file will be able to take advantage of PUA for a maximum of 26 weeks, and the compensation amount will be similar to traditional unemployment. The federal government requires PUA to be tracked separately from regular unemployment, and government agencies are expected to build new online platforms to track pandemic assistance.

What about Small Businesses?

For companies with 500 or fewer employees, emergency grants and a forgivable loan program are now available, and changes to rules for expenses and deductions are meant to make it easier for companies to keep employees on the payroll. To cover immediate operating costs, the act offers small businesses emergency grants that provide up to $10,000.

Through the Paycheck Protection Program, the Small Business Administration (SBA) is providing direct incentives for small businesses to keep their workers on the payroll. The SBA will forgive the loan if all employees are kept on the payroll for 8 weeks and if any portion of the loan is used to maintain payroll, keep workers on the books, or pay for rent, mortgage and existing debt.

Can Students Find Relief?

The CARES Act also includes help for college students and graduates in the form of deferred loans and interest payments through September 30 without penalty. Students can turn unused work-study funds into supplemental grants and continue paying work-study wages while schools are suspended.
Learners who are forced to drop out as a result of coronavirus won’t have that time away from school deducted from their lifetime limits on subsidized loan and Pell Grant eligibility, and they will not be asked to pay back any grants or other aid already received.

Find out more about the CARES Act by visiting the U.S. Department of Labor’s newsroom.

Honoring Presidential Contributions That Benefited The American Workforce

Mon, 18 Feb 2019 14:40:00 GMT

On Presidents’ Day, we traditionally celebrate the importance of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln’s birthdays, two heads of state that greatly impacted American history. But this calendar observance is also a chance to reflect on how a few commanders-in-chief left noteworthy marks on the workforce during their office tenure.

By definition, developing skilled labor traces its roots much further back than Roosevelt’s New Deal, which was enacted in the midst of the Great Depression to lay the groundwork for our modern economic infrastructure. Anecdotal evidence reveals that in 1563, Queen Elizabeth I mandated laws that helped English trade unions find young apprentices.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt

On June 6, 1933, President Roosevelt signed the Wagner-Peyser Act into law as part of the Wagner Unemployment Bill, essentially creating what we know today as “labor exchange.” The law came to light through a collaborative effort from Rep. Theodore A. Peyser, Sen. Robert Wagner (both from New York), and Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins, who worked tirelessly behind the scenes to make the act a reality.

The law established a nationwide employment system and fostered a network of public employment offices known as the United States Employment Service. The system provided the foundation for what would later become the U.S. Department of Labor.

Bill Clinton

During Bill Clinton’s second term as president, the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) of 1998 was enacted to replace, among other pieces of legislation, the Job Training and Partnership Act of 1982. Relying on the framework of state and local workforce investment systems, WIA’s central tenets aimed to increase participants’ employment opportunities, retention, and earnings, while also increasing occupational skill attainment.

The Clinton administration hoped that this act would improve the quality of the workforce, reduce welfare dependency, and enhance the nation's productivity and competitiveness.

Barack Obama

On July 22, 2014, President Barack Obama signed the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) into law. The law was designed to help job seekers access employment, education, training, and support services to succeed in the labor market and to match employers with the skilled workers they need to compete in the global economy. Marking the first legislative reform in 15 years, WIOA superseded WIA and enhanced Wagner-Peyser.

Peering Into the Future of Presidential Impact on Workforce Development

As technology continues to transform the labor force, presidential prowess will continue to mold and shape America’s workforce. In October 2018, President Trump pledged his commitment to developing training opportunities and called for support from businesses and organizations of all sizes.

With unemployment rates at a 49-year low and a record 7.1 million job openings in the United States, there will undoubtedly be opportunities for our current and future presidents to influence the labor market.

The Wagner-Peyser Act Of 1933: Setting the Stage for a Modern-Day Labor Exchange

Tue, 10 Oct 2017 17:25:00 GMT

On June 6, 1933, the Wagner-Peyser Act was signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt as part of the Wagner Unemployment Bill, essentially creating what we know today as the "labor exchange."

A byproduct of the Great Depression and Roosevelt's New Deal, Rep. Theodore A. Peyser, Sen. Robert Wagner, (both from New York), and Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins worked vigorously behind the scenes to make the Act a reality.

The bill established a national employment system, as well as a network of public employment offices known as the United States Employment Service. The network would later become the Department of Labor. Fast forward 65 years: in 1998, the Wagner-Peyser Act was amended to make the Employment Service part of the One-Stop services delivery system, a major development that indirectly paved the way for the inception of Virtual OneStop®.

Although these heads of labor radicalized the idea of employment services in the United States, the concept of a national employment service can't be solely accredited to Peyser, Perkins, Wagner, and Roosevelt. Its roots reach back as far as 1563, when Queen Elizabeth I mandated laws (Statute of Artificers) that helped English trade unions find young apprentices.