Preparing Today’s Youth for the Jobs of the Future

Youth want workforce policies and programs that reflect their unique needs. If policymakers listen, they will create more inclusive opportunities that benefit communities, local businesses, and youth themselves. Jobs for the Future (JFF) held a series of focus groups with young people ages 16 to 24 focused on their career aspirations and perspectives on infrastructure, climate, and semiconductor production occupations.

Informed by the voices of young people and insights from the Workforce Transformation Policy Council (WTPC), a group of future-focused workforce development leaders from around the country who serve youth every day, JFF has developed nine policy recommendations to best serve youth who are neither working nor enrolled in school—also known as “opportunity youth”—through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), Infrastructure Reduction Act (IRA), and Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) Act. 

These recommendations highlight ways state and local officials can dedicate funding to serve young people, expand paid work experiences, increase connections between K-12, workforce, and social services programs, and continue to advance job quality and youth protections.