Michigan and its workforce are at a crossroads. The globalization and evolution of our industries is changing the talents and skills companies demand to maintain and grow successful businesses. Michigan's challenge and duty today is to help provide that workforce.

It is not optional. It is a transformational change that we must embrace as a state if we hope to keep our lifeblood É our workforce in Michigan. Our people are talented. They are gifted. They are innovative and they are mobile. If they cannot find jobs in Michigan they will leave. That, in turn, could cause companies to rethink their commitment to Michigan because they cannot fill the positions they need.

In 2010, a short three years from now, 70 percent of the fastest growing jobs in our state will require a post-secondary degree. Today only 29 percent of our residents age 25 and over have attained an associate's or higher degree. We have time to train this workforce but it is limited time. We need to take bold actions now. The economic future of Michigan and our residents depends on it.

Earlier this summer, Gov. Jennifer Granholm introduced the No Worker Left Behind initiative. No Worker Left Behind is a free tuition program that helps unemployed or underemployed workers get the training they need for new jobs and to help employers find qualified workers. To qualify, an individual must be unemployed, have received a layoff notice or be employed but with a family income of less than $40,000.

By combining state and federal dollars already used for worker training programs, No Worker Left Behind can offer free tuition of up to $5,000 a year for education and training for high-demand jobs in emerging industries such as health care. About 100,000 qualified individuals are expected to take advantage of this program and pursue a degree or occupational certificate at any Michigan community college, university or other approved training program.

So far $37 million in 2007 federal grants designed to pay for worker retraining has been used as part of this program. No Worker Left Behind initiative represents Michigan's future. The program will educate the kind of workforce that current and future businesses demand, which will increase investment in Michigan and enhance our economic development. We must build a sustainable program that continuously develops a workforce that meets the needs of businesses and instills a desire for lifelong learning in our residents.

In the face of Michigan's economic challenges, we need to make investments in our workforce that help us regain and create jobs that pay good wages, support a vibrant middle class, and forge a strong tax base in our state. Failing to do so would mean more poverty, more job loss, and putting ourselves among the states racing to the bottom. No Worker Left Behind is our chance to stay competitive in the changing global economy. We owe it to our families, our communities, and our businesses to give our workforce the skills it needs to compete.

For more information about No Worker Left Behind, please visit www.michigan.gov/nwlb or call your local Michigan Works! agency at (800) 285-WORKS (9675).

Marge Sorge is chair of the Council for Labor & Economic Growth, a board of business, education, labor, human service leaders as well as local and state officials. CLEG serves in an advisory capacity for Gov. Granholm and the director of the Michigan Department of Labor & Economic Growth to continuously improve the Statewide Workforce Investment System. Sorge is a Livonia resident.