Illinois Manufacturing Task Force Report

The Illinois Workforce Investment Board (IWIB) established the Manufacturing Task Force on December 9, 2005 to develop recommendations for addressing the causes of worker shortages in manufacturing as documented in regional reports from the Critical Skill Shortages Initiative (CSSI). The task force was asked to focus on issues that required state level action. The IWIB requested that the task force present findings and recommendations at the September 2006 IWIB meeting.

This report summarizes the major findings and recommendations of the Manufacturing Task Force. The first section provides background information on the formation of the task force, task force meetings, and the major issues addressed. The second section summarizes the task force findings and recommendations and proposed next steps. This section begins with an overview of manufacturing and its major trends in Illinois and the most critical worker shortages. This section then presents the major recommendations on how to address these shortages in Illinois.