A Workforce for the New South?

Deficiencies in basic educational and literacy skills on the part of the workforce endanger the economic vitality of the 16-county (12 in NC, 4 in SC) Charlotte region. This was the finding of a recent strategic assessment sponsored by Advantage Carolina, the area's economic development partnership.

"A high level of illiteracy and lagging educational performance," said a Charlotte Observer report on the study, "threaten to leave large segments of the workforce unprepared for the demands of a 21st-century economy."

Sadly, this situation is not unique to Charlotte. All southern metros and states have too many working adults ill-prepared to succeed in a "knowledge economy." In fact, the 2003 American Community Survey showed that roughly half of all prime-age workers (ages 25-54) in each southern state had no post-secondary education. The proportion of workers lacking any higher education ranged from 37.3% in Virginia to 52% in Arkansas.

Fixing this situation will require sustained public investment in state workforce development systems. Southern leaders looking for a roadmap for addressing the workforce deficiencies currently troubling the region would be wise to turn to "The Mercedes and the Magnolia," a 2002 report by Southern Growth Policies Board. The document details how existing workforce programs could better serve individual workers and the region's long-term economic prosperity.