A new website launched by the state of Iowa offers business owners help in recruiting employees.
FutureReadyIowa.gov’s resources include links to college job boards, information on state funding for apprenticeships, labor market statistics, and more.
The website also allows job-seekers to search for employers by name, sector, size, or county. Users can also get information on outlooks and wages for different careers, find apprenticeships, compare colleges, and more. More information will be added in coming months.
“The Future Ready Iowa website is an important tool to help close the skills gap so more Iowans can have great career opportunities and employers can hire enough skilled workers they need to grow and innovate,” Gov. Terry Branstad said in a statement. “The website also promises to serve as a recruiting tool for the state by showcasing the outstanding education, training, and jobs available in Iowa.”
The website is part of the state’s Future Ready Iowa initiative, which aims to have 70 percent of the workforce earn education or training beyond high school by the year 2025. Currently, less than half of the workforce does.
“We get a lot of kids starting, but not everybody’s finishing,” Jeffrey Weld, executive director for the Governor’s STEM Advisory Council, told The Gazette. “So I think that’s a wonderful metric and a great opportunity to home in on.”