Industry Skill Panels

Industry Skill Panel Standards

Industry skill panels are public/private partnerships of business, labor and education - alliances working together to improve the skills of workers in industries vital to Washington's economy. There are currently 15 active skill panels in Washington that receive funding from the board.

Initiated by Governor Locke and the 2000 Legislature, industry skill panels work to provide:

• workers with better skills, jobs, and career opportunities;
• employers with more efficiency, less turnover, and higher profits;
• expansion of skill standards to meet employer needs;
• educational programs that address key economic clusters and on-the-job learning strategies;
• local and state information about employers' skill needs; and
• policy recommendations based on real-time information.

Additional Industry Skill Panel Information:
Linking Workforce and Economic Development Chart
Workforce and Economic Development State Agency Collaboration
Building Skills Handbook of Innovative State Policies

Recent contracts
Firm wins Skills Panel evaluation contract

Industry Links:
Association of Washington Business
Institute for Workforce Development and Economic Sustainability


State and Local Links:
The State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
Workforce College: A partnership between the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges and the Association of Washington Business
Your regional Workforce Development Councils
Washington Workforce Association
Your local Economic Development Councils