More evidence continues to accumulate that the skills gap is a real and present drag on the U.S. economy as it seeks to recover from disasterously high levels of unemployment.  Suzy Khimm, writing for one of Washington D.C.'s most-read policy blogs, provides two graphs from the Bureau of Labor Statistics that once again prove that a picture (or two) is worth a thousand words.

The first graph shows the number of nonfarm job openings for the twelve-month period ending this past July.

The second graph shows the number of new hires for the same period.  Here too there is an increase but even the most casual observation shows that the trend is not nearly as steep as job openings.  The difference between the two is largely explained by the skills gap.

But it needs to be kept in mind that while the skills gap is becoming more obvioius, it is by means the whole story currently. Even if the skills gap were to magically disappear overnight (and it won't -- National ASTD forecasts the gap will most likely get worse in the years to come), there are currently just not enough jobs to go around. That is the grim picture shown in yet another graph, this one comparing job openings by industry to the number of unemployed workers from the same industry.

As WLP professionals, it is up to us to play a constructive role in helping to come up with creative policy solutions to help close the skills gap now and in the future.  As concerned citizens we should also be considering what needs to be done to ensure that every American who wants a good job has a fair chance to get one.

If you would like to know how you can take action to address these issues, contact me at governmentaffairs@astdps.org.