SLATE To Present Workforce Development Open House

St. Louis Agency on Training and Employment (SLATE) will host a Workforce Development Open House on August 15, 2011. Members of the St. Louis Workforce Investment Board (WIB) and workforce development professionals will have a unique opportunity to meet with the U.S. and local legislators to discuss the importance of local workforce development efforts.

Nearly 14 million Americans nationwide potentially seek services from the workforce development agencies like SLATE, because of their inability to find jobs on their own. Over 40 percent of job seekers remain unemployed for six months or longer. SLATE can assist them with job training and education but need financial help from the U.S. government. Instead, the U.S. House Fiscal Year 2011 Continuing Appropriations bill, HR1, proposed to zero out all funding for state and local workforce development programs and cut or eliminate other valuable programs that would enable job seekers to get back to work. Fortunately, the Senate did not agree and kept the programs, but with budget cuts.

During this informative event SLATE will engage the elected officials into a dialog on how SLATE Missouri Career Center and the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) work together to provide job seekers and the business community with services to meet their needs.

The U.S. and local legislators will have an opportunity to tour SLATE's Central West End Career Center and learn more about the process and how the budget cuts will impact the St. Louis community.

The Open House will take place on Monday, August 15, 2011, 10:00 a.m. – 3 p.m., at the SLATE Missouri Career Center – Central West End (4811 Delmar Ave., St. Louis, MO 63108).

The event is open to the public. The staff will be on hand to answer questions about issues concerning local workforce development efforts.