Intel has said it will hire 3,000 workers for the two fabs in New Albany with an average wage of $135,000 a year.

Filling those jobs and getting workers access to the training they will need for semiconductor manufacturing jobs will be a big test in Ohio and the other parts of the country where semiconductor companies are expanding or setting up new operations, according to a new report from the Brookings Institute.

About two-thirds of those jobs won't require a four-year degree.

Much of the conversation so far has been about attracting high-skilled workers and getting students into science and technology programs, the report said. Intel has committed to invest $100 million in local and national higher education programs over the next decade.

"Yet fabrication plant work holds out real promise for workers who lack formal degrees but are interested in increasing their pay by upskilling with specific credentials and certificates," the report said.

Two-thirds of the jobs in fabs nationwide, about 187,000 jobs in total, are in manufacturing, the report said. The rest are in in higher skilled design activities.

The report cited data from labor analytics firm Lightcast that shows starting positions for semiconductor jobs that don't require bachelor's degrees paid a median wage of $48,000, above noncollege median wages of most other jobs of $40,000, according to the report.

Beyond Ohio, new semiconductor projects have been started in other parts of the country as well including Micron's plan to build in central New York and Taiwan Semiconductor's project in Austin, Texas.

The report cites the work of Columbus State Community College to lead the workforce demands for those jobs by working with a mix of community colleges throughout the state along with state associations and other groups. The methods being used also could be used to help fill manufacturing positions for companies other than Intel.

"The region is well positioned. We have talented folks leading this," said one of the report's coauthors, Lavea Brachman.

The Intel project provides an opportunity to open up the pipeline to make it racially and economically inclusive, she said. Offering additional services such as child care and career counseling will better enable and prepare these workers for these semiconductor jobs, the report said.

Even with all the coordinated effort, it could be tough to find all the workers, Intel will need.

"It's still a tight labor market in many ways," she said. "It's still to be seen where they are going to find all these workers."

Lt. Gov Jon Husted said it's critical for everyone to realize − educational institutions, local governments, and water and sewer agencies − they have a role in Intel's success in Ohio.

Intel has to succeed as a company for Ohio to realize the maximum for what the Licking County site can be, Husted.

"We have to prove that we can support this industry from a talent, infrastructure, cost point of view in Ohio for Intel and other companies to continue to build in Ohio and that Ohio will be the go-to state for high-tech manufacturing," he said. "I'm confident that what we have will go well."

Husted says he only worries about the things that can be controlled to make the project work − education, workforce, infrastructure and a friendly business environment.

"If we do great at this thing, I'm confident that this will be a huge boost," Husted said. "I want our state's children and grandchildren to never have to leave to a great career."

mawilliams@dispatch.com

@BizMarkWilliams

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Intel project in Ohio to test region's workforce ability