While it may not be the first industry you think of when you picture Butte County, manufacturing plays a significant role in the area’s economy,…
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Job Link ensures employee readiness in many ways. Job seekers work closely with career counselors, who assess their preexisting skills, needs and interests. They steer them to classes at Petaluma Adult School, arrange bus passes or child care, help them update their resumes, and direct them to job fairs. In other words, they work to remove the many barriers under-served communities typically have toward employment. And this readiness counseling pays off.
When that long countdown to the end of a prison sentence reaches zero, the door swings open. It will mean little, however, if that’s the last open door an inmate sees.
Unlocking the entrance to the job market is essential for the 35,000 or more individuals released from California prisons yearly. It’s also essential for the economy and for communities who feel the impact when those who are released fail to find solid employment and reoffend.
According to the Department of Labor, individuals with a disability were significantly more likely to be unemployed than their typically abled peers. Across all age groups, only 19% of people with a disability were working in 2021 versus nearly 64% of those without a disability. And 29% of workers with a disability were employed part-time versus 16% of those without a disability.
Treating unemployment in this country as a singular problem misses the bigger picture. Obstacles ranging from literacy to English-language fluency to poverty must be addressed simultaneously. The best way to do this is for workforce development boards, educators, social services and employers to work closely together.
A Better Outcome “It opened the door to something I didn’t feel was possible,” says Jesus Celis, a roofer apprentice in Fresno, California. He is…
By April 2020, the national unemployment rate soared to 14.7%. By October of that year, it dropped by half to 6.9%. But since then, that descent has slowed down to 3.5% by September 2022. To date, employment in service occupations has yet to catch up to pre-pandemic levels.
When the SlingShot Regional project was launched in 2018, there were plenty of players at the table. Representatives from the education, health care and workforce development sectors were all looking for a comprehensive way to address issues and needs in the health care sector.
As of 2020, California was home to over 4.1 million small business. These businesses employed half the state’s workforce and were responsible for nearly two-thirds of new jobs. To say small business is vital to California’s economy would be an understatement.
Apprenticeships allow people to immediately enter their chosen field, get paid and attend college classes tuition-free. These programs also allow employers to train and retain good employees.
Josh Patton, 32, of Fairfield is a weather buff who loves to laugh and talk with people. Patton has developmental disabilities, but stays busy with…
The Big Picture Like most social issues, the problem of homelessness doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Rather, it is deeply linked with the issue of…
Workforce Development Board of Solano County and partner agency Caminar help Fairfield woman find her dream job. Leslie Carrillo, 43, of Fairfield, once worked as…
San Francisco has long been known as a place where local government and community leaders are willing to experiment to solve social problems. One example…
“People from all walks of life come in for information and to apply for services.”
Sheryl Cutler
Program analyst, Workforce Development Board of Solano County
“I tell everybody I know about what the Workforce Development Board did for me, what it can do for you and how it can help you.”
Chad Eklof
Veteran and truck driver
“We have a hand on the pulse of Main Street California. Up and down the state, here’s what our members are doing that is working.”
Bob Lanter, executive director
California Workforce Association