Latest news with #vocationalEducation
Reuters
6 days ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Judge blocks Trump administration's effort to eliminate Job Corps
NEW YORK, June 4 (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Wednesday temporarily stopped the Trump administration from moving ahead with an effort to eliminate the Job Corps, the largest U.S. job training program for low-income youth. U.S. District Judge Andrew Carter in Manhattan issued a temporary restraining order in a lawsuit filed by a trade group representing contractors that operate Job Corps centers. Carter ordered the government not to terminate Job Corps contractors or stop work at Job Corps centers until a further ruling in the case, and he ordered the Labor Department to appear at a court hearing on June 17. The lawsuit alleges that the U.S. Department of Labor is violating federal law and its own regulations by abruptly shuttering the program, a plan the agency announced last week, opens new tab. Job Corps was created by Congress in 1964 and allows 16-to-24-year-olds from disadvantaged backgrounds to obtain high school diplomas or an equivalent, vocational certificates and licenses and on-the-job training. The program currently serves about 25,000 people at 120 Job Corps centers run by contractors. The Labor Department in announcing the end of the program said it was not cost effective, had a low graduation rate and was not placing participants in stable jobs. The department also said there had been thousands of instances of violence, drug use and security breaches at Job Corps centers. The National Job Corps Association and other plaintiffs in Tuesday's lawsuit said the Labor Department does not have the power to dismantle a program established and funded by Congress. Shuttering Job Corps is a small piece of a broader effort by Trump, a Republican, and his appointees to drastically shrink the federal bureaucracy, including by getting rid of some offices and agencies altogether.
Zawya
26-05-2025
- Business
- Zawya
PCFC launches QE2 Hospitality Academy as a groundbreaking step toward excellence in Dubai's tourism and hospitality sector
As part of ongoing national efforts to strengthen Dubai's tourism and hospitality sector, the Ports, Customs, and Free Zone Corporation (PCFC) has officially inaugurated the QE2 Hospitality Academy under the Commercial and Investment Division of the Corporation. The opening ceremony was held aboard the legendary Queen Elizabeth 2 (QE2) cruise ship, one of Dubai's most iconic maritime landmarks with a rich history and symbolic status in global sea travel. The academy was inaugurated by Saeed Al Bannai, Executive Director of Corporate Support Services at PCFC, in the presence of prominent figures from the tourism sector, representatives from strategic partners, and members of the media. The event underscores the UAE's commitment to enhancing vocational tourism education and developing national human capital in line with the highest international standards. Al Bannai stated that the launch of the QE2 Hospitality Academy marks the beginning of a new chapter in the UAE's tourism excellence journey. The academy aims to cultivate specialized human resources in this vital sector, aligned with future aspirations and supporting the UAE National Tourism Strategy 2031. In his speech during the graduation ceremony of the academy's first cohort, which includes 15 graduates, held alongside the official launch, Al Bannai emphasized: "The academy is committed to delivering training programs that meet the highest global standards, in collaboration with leading hospitality institutions. This reaffirms our vision of building a new generation of qualified professionals and developing talent in key tourism sectors through innovation in vocational education and achieving sustainable development that supports the UAE's vision for the future of tourism.' The academy offers specialized professional training programs focused on practical skill-building tailored to the evolving needs of the hospitality and tourism job market. Its curriculum is grounded in robust institutional partnerships to ensure that academic programs are well-aligned with market demands. The current cohort includes 39 students enrolled in training, alongside the 15 students who have successfully completed their programs. The academy's core programs cover key areas such as food service, culinary arts, and room management, and are delivered by a dedicated academic team of full-time lecturers, complemented by expert contributions from industry professionals. The training extends over a three-month in-class education period, followed by three months of practical training at accredited hospitality institutions, totaling 720 intensive training hours. Since its launch, the program has already shown promising results six graduates have received job offers from major tourism institutions upon graduation, while fourteen others continue their professional training in various locations. This reflects the QE2 Academy's effectiveness in bridging the gap between education and the labor market. Speaking during the opening ceremony, Patrick Coodine, Director of the QE2 Hospitality Academy, stated: 'This new academy is a strategic investment in the future of the tourism sector. It seeks to empower local communities and create a lasting impact that enhances the UAE's position as a leading global tourist destination. The idea behind establishing the academy was a practical response to the growing tourism sector and the increasing global competitiveness. Our programs go beyond training — they are designed to qualify students for real employment opportunities, especially in the maritime hospitality sector.' He also noted that the QE2 Hospitality Academy is the only institution in the region offering a unique educational experience aboard a luxury cruise ship like the Queen Elizabeth 2, further enhancing the quality and effectiveness of its academic output.
RNZ News
11-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
'Change fatigue' hits vocational education
Trades training and vocational education is bearing the brunt of political to-ing and fro-ing, some industry figures say (file photo). Photo: Supplied/ UCOL It's been called 'change fatigue' and the tertiary sector covering vocational education is exhausted by the meddling of successive governments. Since 2020 there have been major upheavals with vocational training and polytechnics, and the key word for those in the industry is uncertainty. There's also frustration at the amount of money spent rearranging the deckchairs for ideological reasons, instead of just getting on with the job of equipping students for work. "In effect what we are doing is, we are holding hostage the adequate, in favour of the perfect," says Professor John Tookey. He is an AUT academic who deals with construction industries in developing advanced trades training. He talks to The Detail today about the dangers of throwing away a workable system and replacing it in haste. "You're going to burn through an awful lot of good will in the trades training world to a point where those journeymen type of operators who've been around for a long time are just going to throw their hands up and say, 'enough. Not going to play any more'." The disruption started in 2020 when Labour decided to centralise and standardise polytechnics, and bring trades training in under one umbrella, with a mega-organisation called Te Pūkenga. Workforce Development Councils were established to ensure training courses were fitting students for industry jobs, to set standards and develop qualifications. The transition was messy, half the CEOs of the polytechs resigned, staff were being made redundant, enrolments dropped and courses started to close. But before the new body had time to sort itself out, National kept an election promise to dismantle it. Workforce Development Councils will be gone by the end of this year, to be replaced by around seven Industry Skills Boards. None of those boards include the creative or digital technology industries, which frustrates Paula Browning, the chair of WeCreate, an alliance that covers all sorts of creative and tech industries, from music to publishing to interactive media and fashion. Creative industries contribute more than $17 billion to the economy, generate $4.1bn in export revenue and support more than 117,000 jobs. Digital technology is a sector that Kiwis are excelling in globally. It's worth $13.4bn in exports a year, and contributes more than $17bn to GDP. Browning says they're being sidelined by the new changes, and Workforce Development Councils haven't been given a chance to work. "We had to, along with the digital sector, fight tooth and nail to get creative and digital as part of that system," she says. "In the proposed model that the government's looking at now, creative, tech and business skills are going back under NZQA, so they won't have one of the new industry standards boards that are proposed. "What we are doing with these proposals is looking to put those industries of the future, back into the past, and it just doesn't make sense." The government promises that every effort will be made to make sure that learning is not disrupted, but Paula Browning questions how that will happen without a transition plan and just seven months to get the work done. "And for some of us there is no transition ... it's just, 'you're out of here'. And it just feels like we're doing something in haste that we are going to regret in the not too distant future." Check out how to listen to and follow The Detail here . You can also stay up-to-date by liking us on Facebook or following us on Twitter . Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
