President Obama's Council of Economic Advisers has just released a report entitled, "Preparing the Workers of Today for the Jobs of Tomorrow." This report provides an overview of the growth and development of the U.S. labor market in the coming years. According to a press release on the White House website, "The report discusses the skills and training that will likely be most relevant in growing occupations, and the attributes of an education and training system designed to best equip the workers of today for the jobs of tomorrow."

In the Report, the Council projects that the economy of 2016 will be similar to the economy of 2008. However, there will be some significant shifts. One major positive prospect is health care. The Council forecasts that this field will remain a strong source of job growth in the labor market. The trend for the long term has increasing prospects in the health care field, including the occupations of medical records and health information technicians, registered nurses, clinical laboratory technicians, and physical therapists. The subsectors of nursing homes, physician offices, and hospitals should continue grow. Home health care, outpatient care, and medical and diagnostic laboratories are some of the subsectors expected to add the most jobs.

"Investments in health information technology will only accelerate the growth in this occupation," the Report says. Even if health reform measures cause a slower growth rate of spending, the probable expansion of health coverage might lead to a larger demand for workers -physicians, non-physician clinicians, health care support workers and nurses - for the newly insured population.

The Report goes on to examine what factors will be in demand with employers. These include employees who can think critically and problem-solve, with good analytic and interactive skills. The occupations that have employees with post-secondary education and training should be growing faster than other areas.

The Report may be accessed at: http://www.whitehouse.gov/administration/eop/cea/factsheets_reports/

Adapted from a White House press release and the President's Council's Report.

Link: http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Council-of-Economic-Advisers-Releases-Report-on-Jobs-of-the-Future

Watch for a workforce overview in the September issue of DOTmed Business News.