Solve Talent Crisis with CTE
Walk through any advanced manufacturing plant in Grand Rapids or a hospital wing in Marquette and you will hear the same worry: “We can’t hire fast enough.” State analysts project that professional trades will account for more than 520,000 positions by 2030, with roughly 45,000 openings every single year. These roles — industrial technicians, line workers, CNC machinists, surgical technologists — pay a median $61,000, or 16% above the statewide wage, and most require an industry certificate or two year degree, not a bachelor’s diploma. Solve Talent Crisis with CTE.
Michigan’s Hot 50 Jobs outlook—our best snapshot of in demand, well paying careers through 2032 — shows that about half of the top roles are in health science, information technology, construction trades and clean energy manufacturing, all fields where career & technical education (CTE) provides a natural on ramp.
CTE Facts
The Michigan Department of Education’s newly released 2023-24 CTE Facts brochure paints a vivid picture of how powerful this pathway has become. Last year, more than 112,000 high schoolers explored one of 53 state approved CTE programs, while another 122,000 learners advanced their training at community and tribal colleges.
These outcomes are not boutique success stories; they are statewide averages produced within the existing patchwork of funding and availability. Yet too many students still attend high schools with limited or no state approved CTE programs, particularly in low wealth rural districts and densely populated urban centers where equipment costs or transportation barriers deter enrollment.
Economic Development
Expanding CTE is not just an education reform; it is an economic development strategy and an equity strategy rolled into one. When half of all Michigan jobs over the next decade will rely on sub baccalaureate technical expertise, withholding access effectively denies thousands of young people a realistic shot at the middle class and deprives employers of the skilled talent they are begging to hire.
CTE students are graduating on time, securing industry credentials and moving straight into well-paid careers — clear evidence that the model works and a compelling reason for state government to make it universally accessible.
To keep pace, the state must first ensure that every student, no matter the ZIP code, can access a certified CTE program. Next, the cost barriers that discourage participation must come down; covering dual enrollment tuition and industry certification exam fees is an investment that quickly pays for itself in higher lifetime earnings and the tax revenue those wages generate. Finally, Michigan can supercharge the transition from classroom to career by offering modest tax credits to companies that provide apprenticeships or paid internships aligned with state approved curricula, giving employers a direct incentive to cultivate the very workforce they need.
New Policies Not Needed
These steps do not require experimental policies or new bureaucracies; they simply scale up practices that are already delivering results. Failing to act risks a far more expensive outcome —importing talent from elsewhere or watching production lines and hospital wards stand idle for lack of qualified hands.
Michigan has in hand the data, the demand and the educational infrastructure to hit Sixty by 30 and to secure a resilient, home-grown workforce for the industries that will define this decade. Universal access to high quality secondary and post secondary CTE is the lever that lifts all three goals at once: higher credential attainment, stronger regional economies, and upward mobility for families in every corner of the state.
The labor market is pleading. The evidence is overwhelming. All that remains is the political will to fund and scale the programs that already deliver for students, employers and Michigan’s shared prosperity.
Source: Solve Talent Crisis with CTE
