Rework America State Network

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The Rework America Alliance and the Rework America State Network are now led by Jobs for the Future (JFF). Alliance tools and resources are shared by JFF to support its North Star goal to help 75 million people facing systemic barriers to advancement move into quality jobs within the next 10 years. You can still access Alliance resources here while JFF works to get them live on its site.

A Forum for State Leaders to Share and Accelerate Workforce Innovation

The Rework America State Network, formed by Markle in 2018, is a non-partisan collaboration with 30 state governors and the mayor of the District of Columbia working to unlock economic mobility for all American workers. The State Network provided a forum for governors and their senior teams to share innovative workforce practices, tools, data, and resources to transform the labor market at a scale and pace not possible through individual state actions. In turn, member states brought a commitment from the governor and senior state leaders to work towards expanding economic security and mobility for all, particularly for populations with the least economic power.

Under Markle Leadership, the State Network Supported States by:

Sharing practices and highlighting successful programs through webinars, convenings, and individual conversations with education and workforce leaders.

Partnering with states on policy development to share insights, policy strategies, and case studies on what is working in states.

Providing a vehicle for scaling successful workforce strategies across more states.

The pandemic’s acute economic impact on workers—particularly those without a bachelor’s degree, and Black, Latino and women workers—brought long-standing economic precarity into greater focus. These trends create a clear urgency and opportunity to build workforce, higher education and training systems that combat low job quality, address systemic racism and other problems, and prioritize expansive economic security.

State leaders are critically positioned to build a better system that provides opportunity for all workers to get good jobs and experience economic security.

Rework America State Network Governors

Gov. Kay Ivey

Alabama

Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders

Arkansas

Gov. Gavin Newsom

California

Gov. Jared Polis

Colorado

Gov. Ned Lamont

Connecticut

Gov. John Carney

Delaware

Gov. Brad Little

Idaho

Gov. J. B. Pritzker

Illinois

Gov. Eric Holcomb

Indiana

Gov. Kim Reynolds

Iowa

Gov. Laura Kelly

Kansas

Gov. Andy Beshear

Kentucky

Gov. Maura Healy

Massachusetts

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer

Michigan

Gov. Tim Walz

Minnesota

Gov. Mike Parson

Missouri

Gov. Greg Gianforte

Montana

Gov. Phil Murphy

New Jersey

Gov. Roy Cooper

North Carolina

Gov. Doug Burgum

North Dakota

Gov. Mike DeWine

Ohio

Gov. Kevin Stitt

Oklahoma

Gov. Josh Shapiro

Pennsylvania

Gov. Daniel McKee

Rhode Island

Gov. Bill Lee

Tennessee

Gov. Spencer Cox

Utah

Gov. Phil Scott

Vermont

Gov. Jay Inslee

Washington

Mayor Muriel Bowser

Washington, DC

Gov. Tony Evers

Wisconsin

Sharing Rework America Alliance Resources and Insights

The State Network elevates practices that states can adopt to achieve their workforce goals. For example, resources developed by the Rework America Alliance are shared with State Network members.

The Alliance, a collaboration of more than 30 leading organizations including civil rights organizations, nonprofits, private sector employers, labor unions, educators, and others, is working to help unemployed workers from low-wage roles move into better jobs, particularly Black and Latino workers who have been disproportionately impacted by the current economic crisis.

Resources shared by the Alliance include robust data insights and tools to help workforce leaders access insights on good jobs and training; training and tools for career coaches to help them better support job seekers; and resources to help drive the adoption of equitable hiring and talent management practices by employers.

Learn more at markle.org/alliance-resources

Providing Policy Support

The State Network team:

Engages in extensive research and engagement with federal policymakers and relevant organizations.

Focuses on policies that leverage the workforce and training systems to address problems in the labor market such as low job quality and systemic racism.

Identifies promising policy strategies that expand economic security and mobility within four areas of focus:
– Postsecondary education and training
– Labor market transformation and job quality
– Workforce training performance and accountability
– Career counseling and coaching

Related Research

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New Report: State strategies to advance job quality and build inclusive workforces in transportation and clean energy

Using Data to Strengthen Workforce Training

New Report: Strategies for states to improve workforce training program quality and access to information for their residents.