In 2011, NCWorks launched the Work Ready Community Initiative, a program to
track the certification of local skilled workers and their workforce readiness in NC
counties. In collaboration with community colleges, participants are evaluated on
applied math, workplace documents, and graphic literacy.
When students receive National Career Readiness Certification (NCRC), they
improve their employability. The certification is recognized across the country as
the standard for workforce skills. When employers require NCRC certified
employees, the quality of workers escalates which strengthens our industries and
builds our economic structure.
Bladen County is now poised to benefit from the Work Ready Community
Initiative, which supports economic development by providing a workforce with
documented foundational skills. Other benefits include competitive cost models
through lower employee turnover, decreased training time and costs, and related
efficiencies that enhance North Carolina's global competitiveness.
The key to a successful Work Ready Community is participation from the largest
employers in the county. When local businesses recognize the credentialing
offered by the initiative and recommend or require the credentialing for their
employee base, the value of the initiative it greatly enhanced.
New industries who may be considering Bladen County as a potential location can
use the Work Ready status as an indicator of the workforce skill set in the area.
Certification tells potential employers that the county is committed to providing
highly skilled and motivated workers.
Local businesses can help Bladen County become a Certified Work Ready
Community by listing their business as one who recognizes or recommends
individuals for employment who have obtained the National Career Readiness
Certificate.
It only takes a few seconds to indicate your company’s support of the
community’s certification effort by signing up at
https://www.workreadycommunities.org/business/form
For additional information regarding Work Ready Communities, or to learn how
to obtain a National Career Readiness Certificate (NCRC), contact Sondra Guyton
at Bladen Community College at 910-879- 5634 or sguyton@bladencc.edu.
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