SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - With unemployment near record lows through Labor Day, efforts are shifting from helping San Diegans get jobs to helping them land better ones.
The San Diego Workforce Partnerships is teaming up with local employers to offer on-the-job training to workers so they can get certified and move up in their careers.
The focus is currently on so-called middle-skill occupations, those that require something more than a high school diploma but less than a four-year degree.
The state Employment Development Department says the five most in-demand middle-skill occupations in San Diego and Imperial Counties are accounting assistants, teacher assistants, medical assistants, heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers, and nursing assistants.
The EDD says there are currently 2,500 openings for those positions.
The Workforce Partnership recently teamed up with First Promise Care Service in El Cajon to offer its caregivers a two- to three-month certification program to become certified nursing assistants.
"It does motivate because they know they're not just going to be there," said Dyna Jones, CEO of First Promise. "There's actually a promotion. There's growth, and people are looking for something like that."
Jones said caregivers who complete the program could go from earning $15 per hour to as much as $20 as a team lead if they stay with the company.
The Workforce Partnership has a new tool for San Diegans to look up information on different jobs, what they pay, and training requirements and opportunities.
The county's unemployment rate was 3.6 percent in July, the same as a year earlier. There are still about 57,000 San Diegans who are unemployed.
