Kansas WORKReady!
Certificate
KANSASWORKS State Board
Kansas WORKReady!
Certificate is a credential that is:
• Evidence-based
• Industry-recognized
• Portable
• Certifies essential skills
important for workplace
success
The Kansas WORKReady! Certificate is a
credential that is used across all sectors of the
economy and measures the following skills:
• Problem solving
• Critical thinking
• Reading and using written, work-related text
• Applying information from workplace
documents to solve problems
• Applying mathematical reasoning to
work-related problems
• Setting up and performing work-related
mathematical calculations
• Locating, synthesizing, and applying
information that is presented graphically
• Comparing, summarizing, and analyzing
information presented in multiple, related
graphics
Kansas WORKReady! Certificate
• Certificate documents skills using three
assessments:
• Applied Mathematics
• Locating Information
• Reading for Information
• Employers get meaningful evidence of
work skills in common language that
business understands
Certificate Levels & Employability
Core employability skills for:
Bronze
3 3 3
35% of occupations
Silver
4 4 4
65% of occupations
Gold
5 5 5
90% of occupations
Platinum
95% of occupations
6 6 6
Level 5 Applied Mathematics
Quik Call charges .18 per minute for long-distance
calls. Econo Phone totals your phone usage each
month and rounds the number of minutes up to
nearest 15 minutes. It then charges $7.90 per hour
of phone usage, dividing this charge into 15-minute
segments if you used less than a full hour. If your
office makes 5 hours 3 minutes worth of calls this
month using the company with the lower price,
how much will these calls cost?
A. $39.50
B. $41.48
C. $41.87
D. $54.00
E. $54.54
NCRC Certificate Levels
Bronze: Level 3 minimum in each skill
Core employability skills for approximately 35%
of jobs
Silver: Level 4 minimum in each skill
Core employability skills for approximately 65%
of jobs
Gold: Level 5 minimum in each skill
Core employability skills for approximately 90%
of jobs
Platinum: Level 6 minimum in each skill
Core employability skills for approximately 95%
of jobs
Higher Skills = Higher Pay
National Career Readiness Certificate Levels
and Approximate Average Annual Salaries (U.S.)
Platinum
Occupations
Gold
Occupations
Silver
Occupations
Bronze
Occupations
$92,000
$55,000
$31,000
$27,000
Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wages 2009,
ACT JobPro Data 2006-2010
Kansas WORKReady!
Kansas WORKReady! benefits to job candidates:
– Provides tangible proof of workplace skills
– May be used as an additional tool for
application
– Can help in determining a training program
which may result in increased skills and
earnings
– May be used as a portable credential
KANSASWORKS Info
• Scores are posted on KANSASWORKS
• Employers will see the certificate level
next to the name
• Only those with complete active
resumes can be searched by employers
• KANSASWORKS will show the last
date an assessment was completed
Certified Workforce
From 4/09-6/11 Kansas has issued:
360 Platinum Certificates
3482 Gold Certificates
6021 Silver Certificates
1929 Bronze Certificates
11591 Total Certificates
Return on Investment Case
Studies
Training:
• Morningstar Farms:
• Training time reduced 50%
• Cost savings of $2500-$3700 per employee
• Northrop Grumman Ship Systems:
• 28% reduction in turnover (layoff) rates
• Reduced layoffs via cross-training ($2M savings)
Return on Investment Case
Studies
Performance:
• Creative Extruded Products:
• Overtime hours reduced (95%)
• Scrap expenditures reduced (21%)
• 50:1 profit / cost ratio
• UP Special Delivery:
• Increased productivity resulted in 20% staff
reduction in data processing department
Outcomes*
• Increased employee satisfaction / morale
• Increased management / supervisory
satisfaction
• Increased employee focus on education
• Industry competitiveness
• Job satisfaction
• Skill data (succession planning)
• Employee performance ratings
*www.workkeys.com/case
Who Uses WorkKeys Nationally?
https://www.kansasworks.com/
ada/mn_workready_dsp.cfm
20
How Are WORKReady!
Certificates Earned?
• Job candidates take KeyTrain as a preassessment to determine if they need skill
enhancement
– KeyTrain can be completed anywhere through the
internet
• Job candidates will take the three WorkKeys
assessments online through:
– Local community or technical college program
– Local adult education program
– Their local Workforce Centers
www.workkeys.com
www.workkeys.org
www.kansascommerce.com
www.kansascommerce.com
www.kansasworks.com
www.kansasworks.com