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Proud to CHOOSE GREATER PEORIA

Workforce Solutions

Regional Job Board

Find your next career path and post current openings at your company on our local job board.

Fast Facts

178,613

Jobs in Central IL (EMSI, Industry Demographics, 2020-2021)

$68.7K (EMSI)

Average earnings per job

73,618

Millennials in GP (2020-2021)

9

Colleges, Universities, and Technical Training Institutions

3 Largest Industries

Health Care, Social Assistance Government, Manufacturing

Peoria Economic Composition Change

Enhancing A Responsive Talent Pipeline Through Collaboration

Regional Workforce Alliance

A healthy workforce is the number one driver of economic growth because an economy can only be as productive as its citizens.
All our workforce efforts are tackled from a regional point of view. These efforts fit within a three-pronged approach to workforce development: developing pathways to work and career exploration for youth and young adults; upskilling working adults; and addressing the multiple barriers to employment of low-income families. Greater Peoria’s workforce development efforts are led by the Regional Workforce Alliance (RWA), of which the Greater Peoria EDC is a member. The RWA and the Office of Workforce Solutions work to stabilize and grow our economy by systematically connecting employers, educators, community-based organizations with high school graduates, the under-credentialed and multi-barriered adults to ensure our citizens have the required certifications to obtain gainful employment.

Teacher leading a discussion with students.

Developing a Workforce from Cradle to Career

Emerging Workforce Training Programs

The Greater Peoria region starts cultivating its future workforce at an early age, collaborating with regional career development organizations at every educational level to meet our employers’ future workforce needs. From youth mentorship organizations to professional and personal development programs for our youth, Greater Peoria has it all:

  • Be Anything is a program led by the Peoria Park District and Peoria PlayHouse Museum where children imagine, play and explore different career options for their future.
  • Junior Achievement of Central Illinois is a volunteer-delivered, kindergarten-12th grade program that fosters work-readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy skills, and uses experiential learning to inspire students in our community to dream big and reach their potential.
  • CareerSpark is an interactive, multi-industry career exploration event open to all 8th grade students in our region. Through hands-on exhibits, this event sparks students’ interest in the exciting careers available in Greater Peoria in the 16 national career pathways. The expo, led largely by regional employers, showcases different career fields in our top industry clusters, including manufacturing, healthcare, logistics, agribusiness, IT, and more. It helps inform their choices and efforts into high school and college, providing a long term workforce pipeline for our companies’ sustainability.
  • CareerSpark: You’re Hired! is a program designed for high school students to find jobs and internships, apprenticeships, and workforce-based learning experiences. This program is a networking and job fair event that connects students with regional employers and regional employers with the emerging workforce.
  • The region also has College and Career Readiness Programs which allow students to graduate from high school with work-ready credentials, on-the-job experience, and even associate degrees from local community colleges.
Rural matters discussion in Peoria.

Upskilling Existing Talent to Address Workforce Gaps

Adult Upskilling Programs

The Office of Workforce Solutions serves as a neutral convener for the programs and solutions targeted at under-employed and under-credentialed adults with work experience to obtain credentials that address workforce gaps. We do this by working with the region’s educational institutions to ensure credentialing programs are available & aligned with workforce gaps. We apply the principles outlined in the Talent Pipeline Management® (TPM) Practices of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Talent Pipeline Management Initiative.

The Office of Workforce Solutions also identifies the highest-growth, most in-demand jobs in the region by running focus groups and soliciting actionable feedback.

Current focus groups include:
Advanced Manufacturing Employer Collaborative

Removing Barriers to Employment for a Stronger Talent Pipeline

Multiple Barrier Reduction Programs

The Office of Workforce Solutions supports the Regional Workforce Alliance in its work to address barriers that prevent adults from working. These adults often swirl through community-based organizations and support systems with little to no credentials or work experience that allow them to qualify even for entry-level jobs. We facilitate introductions and connections between training providers, organizations and resources within the workforce development ecosystem. We also promote hiring opportunities for diverse populations and talent pipelines.

CONTACT OUR TEAM

We’re Here to Help

Contact us to learn more about Greater Peoria’s efforts in enhancing our workforce.

A man in glasses posing in front of a brick wall

Jeffrey Inman

Director of Workforce Solutions