With some 8 million open jobs in the United States, employers should be looking at midcareer and older workers as a tested asset when looking to recruit talent, says Steven Lee, CEO of SkillUp Coalition.
“Here’s why. They have a lot of skills and experiences that are going to benefit you as a company. Second, they’re going to bring an attitude of hard work, teamwork, and appreciation,” Lee says. “Not only are you going to get an experienced skilled worker, you’re going to have one with a really good attitude towards teamwork, hard work, et cetera, which is what you want.”
SkillUp Coalition is a nonprofit that works to connect job seekers to skills training and good-paying jobs that don’t require a college degree. The organization counts more than 100 partners, including training and education providers, employers, nonprofits and philanthropies.
Started in 2020, it first helped frontline workers displaced by the COVID-19 pandemic discover new career paths. Since then, SkillUp Coalition says it’s helped more than 44,000 workers land positions while also supporting more than 2.1 million workers.
Steven Lee spoke with me on the subject of age, particularly when it comes to older and midcareer adults in the workforce, as part of the Age in America series, a collaboration between WorkingNation and Scripps News Network which began in June.
Watch a clip from our interview below.
Get more of our WorkingNation Age in America articles, videos, and podcasts here.
Get more of Scripps News’ Age in America coverage here.
