By Lisa Schumacher, Director, Education Strategies, McDonald’s Corporation

American employers are facing a serious shortage of qualified workers. There is an urgent and growing need for more employees with industry-recognized credentials and college degrees.

How serious is this skills mismatch? Employers are struggling to find workers who are qualified to meet the demands of today’s jobs. Forty percent of jobs stay unfilled because there are not enough workers with the right training and credentials, according to a 2014 survey by ManpowerGroup Inc., a human-resources firm. And if something doesn’t change, we are track to face a significant shortage of workers by 2020 across all business sectors.

More than ever before, businesses need to invest in ongoing education, training and career advancement support for employees, and the need is really two-fold: we need to help today’s employees get the skills they need to succeed, and we also need an education system that is preparing tomorrow’s workers to meet the needs of employers.

Not only is the skills mismatch a serious problem for employers and workers, but is also takes a serious toll on our economy as a whole. That’s why the McDonald’s Corporation is proud to be part of Business Champions Supporting Credential Completion, an unprecedented employer-led partnership comprised of leaders at top businesses across the U.S.

Who are the Business Champions? We represent a wide variety of sectors, from retail and hospitality, to agriculture and health care, to logistics and manufacturing. As divergent as our businesses may be, when it comes to making sure America has a work-ready labor force, we are all in the same boat. As part of this new nationwide partnership, we are combining forces to ensure that America has a work-ready labor force and is in a position to stay globally competitive.

Of course, many businesses invest in employee education and training in a variety of ways. Across the nation, there are many promising models and exciting pilot programs for employee education. McDonald’s recently announced Archways to Opportunity—an overarching education strategy designed to meet people at their point of need—whether that’s learning English-language skills, getting a high school diploma, or moving on to an Associate’s or Bachelor’s degree. It also includes resources and support, like tuition assistance and advising services, to help eligible employees working in McDonald’s restaurants overcome the many barriers to pursuing educational goals.

It sets a new standard for workforce development that other companies should follow.

As director of education strategies at McDonald’s, I see firsthand how access to training and education has a positive impact not only on the company’s bottom line, but also on the professional and personal lives of employees. Many employees want to continue their education, whether that means completing a credential or earning a degree. But the barriers to training and education can prove insurmountable, especially for working adults and first-generation college students. Business leaders must do more to eliminate those barriers, and then share lessons learned and proven solutions with the business community.

We need to implement solutions that can operate at a scale large enough to make a difference for the country’s entire workforce, not just geographic or sector-specific pockets. We need to step out of our corporate silos and share what we know. We need a sustained commitment in the private and public sectors to universal upskilling, so that every worker has opportunities to learn and grow, and every employer has a pipeline of skilled employees.