OurFuture.org on Michigan’s successful No Worker Left Behind (NWLB) initiative

From a January 28, 2010 report (.pdf):

In 2007, Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm launched the No Worker Left Behind (NWLB) Initiative, which provides up to $10,000 over two years for any unemployed or underemployed worker seeking education or training that leads to a high-growth job in the state. In its first eighteen months of the program more than 60,000 workers entered some form of skills training, and 72 percent of those completing training have been able to obtain or retain employment, despite the fact that, as of September 2009, there were ten unemployed individuals for every job opening in the state.

Additionally, more than 1,000 firms across the state—primarily in the manufacturing and health care sectors —were able to avert layoffs and revitalize their businesses through job retention training, which helped nearly 17,000 workers get the skills they needed to keep their jobs with these firms. Perhaps most importantly, 77 percent of participants still in training were in long-term training programs (more than one year), meaning that they have the time to develop skills and earn industry-recognized credentials that can lead to good family-supporting jobs, rather than settling for the first low-wage job opportunity that comes along.
Based on these promising outcomes, Governor Granholm recently announced that NWLB will continue as Michigan’s permanent workforce development policy.