By Jennifer Griswold Staff Writer
The Daily Oklahoman

NORMAN — WorkKeys, a new career readiness program, is expected to benefit both businesses and workers in Cleveland County, officials said at a launch luncheon Tuesday.

The program offered by the Cleveland County Workforce Investment Board will benefit businesses, individuals, educators and the community, said WorkKeys coordinator Beth Jones. WorkKeys is designed to help businesses identify workers who have the skills needed for a certain job, thus reducing turnover.

It helps workers by placing them in jobs that meet their skill levels and pinpointing what skills they need to develop, officials said.

Another purpose of the program is to help educators identify the skills students need before going out into the workforce, program officials said.

Under the career readiness program, businesses are profiled to determine the skill levels needed for workers. Prospective employees take the WorkKeys assessment to determine their skill levels. Then qualified workers are matched with the businesses.

The assessments, which measure “real world” skills, were developed by ACT, best known for its college entrance exam. Workers are tested for skills in math, reading and locating information.

The state is promoting the program, and counties are working to implement the skills assessment. The state has funded profiles for 50 companies and 17,000 potential workers. Gov. Brad Henry has asked for 42,000 additional tests in this year’s budget, said Norma Noble, deputy secretary for work force development at the state Commerce Department.

“An employer recently told me he hired 128 people last year and only had seven left,” Noble said. “We have enough people, but we don’t have enough people with the right skills, and that’s what this system addresses.”

Technology is changing the workforce; the majority of jobs now require highly skilled workers, said Bob Felty, business development manager for ACT Inc.

People who go through career readiness testing will earn a certificate listing their skill level and job skills.

The certificates will be an asset to both employers and employees, Felty said.

Businesses can schedule a presentation or get more information by calling Jones at the Cleveland County Workforce Investment Board at 573-1900. 

Copyright 2007, The Oklahoma Publishing Company