US House Approves Two Amendments Authored By Rep. Krishnamoorthi To Strengthen Veteran Job Training Programs and Skills Training In Advanced Manufacturing

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Yesterday, the US House of Representative passed amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) introduced by Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi to expand access to on-the-job training and reevaluate the needs of job training programs for military reservists.

Under the NDAA, the US Army is required to establish a Center of Excellence on Advanced and Additive Manufacturing, which would operate with public-private partnerships to facilitate technology development and support workforce development efforts in advanced manufacturing. Under one of Congressman Krishnamoorthi’s amendments which the House approved unanimously, on-the-job training would be added to these partnerships.

“We need to focus our job training programs and initiatives on in-demand skills in sectors on the rise, especially in sectors vital to our national security,” said Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi. “As emerging industries like advanced manufacturing become more essential, we need to ensure that we have the highly-skilled workforce we need to meet the demands of the defense-industrial base and strengthen our economy overall. Despite its importance and effectiveness, on-the-job training has been consistently declining for decades, but my amendment will provide a foothold through vital private-public partnerships with the military and civilian employees.”

Congressman Krishnamoorthi’s second amendment requires the Department of Defense to report on how many underemployed military reserve members are training in fields that match their existing skills and training. This new report will improve the targeting of job training programs to support reservists and veterans as they transition into civilian life.

“While a number of programs help prepare veterans and reservists for civilian careers, we need to make sure we’re monitoring the effectiveness of these programs to help those who’ve served our nation so honorably get a strong start in the civilian world. Many of them receive career training in the military, now we need to make sure they can transfer those skills to the civilian workforce.”