'Michigan Matters' Focus: Putting At-Risk Employees Back To Work

The situation isn't lost on Michael Finney as more Detroiters are out of work and habitually unemployed when there is a growing need for more trained workers than ever before.

Which is why Finney, who left his job in state government, is working to help fix the situation and address poverty in Detroit and other cities by getting people back to work.

He left his job Oct. 31 as senior economic growth adviser to Gov. Rick Snyder to become CEO of Community Ventures of Michigan, an offshoot of Community Ventures, which he started with Snyder's blessing in 2012 when he ran Michigan Economic Development Corporation.

Its goal: put more structurally unemployed people into jobs and help them stay there.

"Our plan calls for the expansion ... into other Michigan communities with poverty rates exceeding 20%," Finney said during taping of "Michigan Matters." "Based on the current budget, Community Ventures is assisting 1,200 placements annually.

Given there are approximately 150,000–200,000 Community Venture-eligible people throughout Michigan, we plan to ramp up to 10,000 placements annually by 2020."

Finney also appeared on the roundtable along with Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson, Denise Ilitch, CEO of Ilitch Enterprises, and host Carol Cain.

The panel discussed efforts to address the talent gap in the state with 70,000 jobs unfilled as there aren't enough people with the right skill set.

You can hear the conversation by watching "Michigan Matters" 11:30 a.m. Sunday on CBS 62.