San Leandro Water Treatment Plant looks to Castro Valley Adult and Career Education externs for future employees by Raul Clement In the four decades since it first opened, Castro Valley Adult and Career Education has […]
ValleyBuild and Community Colleges Collaborate by Whip Villarreal The Fresno Regional Workforce Development Board has intensified efforts to enhance its ValleyBuild training program by partnering with colleges across the region, providing participants with more opportunities […]
How ValleyBuild prepares workers for union apprenticeship by Raul Clement Union construction jobs are highly coveted for their pay, benefits and worker protections. However, the path to joining a construction union may not always be […]
Women break barriers in the trades by Gail Allyn Short “ValleyBuild changed my life. My life is completely different because they gave me an opportunity.” Alexis Rowberry, ValleyBuild participant & electrical apprentice with IBEW Local […]
Pre-apprenticship program gives students a leg up in the construction industry by Anne Stokes Nidia Chicas has done a lot in her life: She’s worked as an assistant cook and secretary for the school district, […]
A transformational journey from prison to employment by Matt Jocks For Jesus Nunez, it had been a life of closed doors. When one of those doors opened and he got to see what was on […]
How a single dad turned his life around and emerged stronger by Whip Villareal When Jerry Irvin joined the ValleyBuild training program, he was a single father living off unemployment benefits after his auto-body shop […]
Training unrepresented populations in the Central Valley by Kathleen Vivaldi ValleyBuild, a Fresno Regional Workforce Development Board program, critically contributes to California’s building and construction sectors by training underrepresented community members in 14 Central Valley […]
Finding a high-paying job without a college degree can be challenging, particularly in rural areas. In recent years, a program called ValleyBuild has aimed to rectify thi […]
California’s Central Valley feeds the nation. The Fresno Regional Workforce Development Board is intent on ensuring the valley doesn’t see its own tables sit empty. […]
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. […]
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, creating more value per employee than other sectors including retail, government, construction or information technology. […]
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. […]
by Raul Clement Literacy and Employment When we talk about lowering unemployment, we’re not just talking about creating more jobs. We’re talking about a myriad of obstacles that need to be addressed. One of the […]
ValleyBuild is a training program started by the Fresno Regional Workforce Development Board with the aim of preparing students for apprenticeships and careers in construction. The program lasts six weeks, and is based on the multi-craft core curriculum, or MC3, meaning students learn skills ranging from electrical work to forklift operation. The instructors come from local union affiliates in the Building Trades Council. […]
Phillip Fitzgerald loved his job. For 32 years, he worked as a commercial driver, most recently transporting senior citizens. He was at his last job for nearly five years before the pandemic hit and the company shut down. After a year of lockdowns and COVID-related closures, he finally found another job, only to have that company relocate out of state after two and a half months. With a family to support, Fitzgerald needed to find work. […]
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. […]
The Workforce Development Board of Solano County collaborates with a number of local agencies to help veterans find jobs and train for new careers. […]
The Workforce Development Board of Solano County and its partners are giving ex-offenders and justice involved citizens a path to employment. […]
People with disabilities can learn how to write a resume, read and understand job descriptions and apply for jobs online. The goal is to help those with disabilities to become as independent as possible. […]
Employment specialists analyze each client’s level of education, skills, work history and goals and teaches them how to carry out a successful job hunt–no matter what their barrier to employment are. […]
Apprenticeships are a way to build a skills-foundation and receive an education, all while earning a competitive wage. And for employers, investing in employees leads to greater employee satisfaction, which in turn leads to better workers and longer employee retention. […]
Complex problems require complex solutions. It’s tempting to think homelessness can be solved merely through more affordable housing. But that’s just a stopgap. The homeless need a living wage, jobs that use their skills, and resources like gas money and child care in order to continue working. These needs won’t be met by one agency alone. But when organizations like CWA unite with private partners, they can change the lives of people like Markitha Welcome and Malik Woods. […]
The California Workforce Association works with boards throughout the state to match local workers with a local business–which has a hug impact on individuals’ lives and the regional economy. […]
CityBuild in San Francisco is a national model and a prime example of how local workforce boards have built partnerships that meet the needs of residents and industry. […]
The National Conference of State Legislatures, or NCSL, says a good-paying job is the pathway for ex-offenders to access housing, health care and the ability to pay restitution, child support and other debts mandated by the courts. Consequently, more states are implementing policies to motivate employers to hire ex-offenders and the justice-involved, including reexamining employer liability and record expungement rules and offering incentives. […]
The Prison to Employment Initiative has an array of benefits to employers, especially now during a statewide labor shortage. […]
Rehabilitation means more than just serving your sentence–it means having a way to re-enter society and being successful in employment. The Prison to Employment Initiative helps make that happen. […]
Temporary jobs through CareerPoint can help justice-involved people pay the bills and also leads to better full-time work and careers. […]
A Solano County program partners with the local workforce board to find justice-involved students good-paying jobs, […]
by Raul Clement Brandon Rodegeb remembers the countless hours he used to spend each week applying for job after job. He was ready to work and qualified. In fact, some might say he was too […]
In order to re-enter the workforce, some people need wraparound services from partners in Solano County.
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The nation’s leading nonprofit for re-entry workforce development, CEO helps justice-involved people find immediate employment–and build high-paying careers. […]
Without support, many justice-involved people can end up without a home and other basic needs, making finding a job even harder. […]
The Prison to Employment Initiative can help employers find skilled applicants for essential positions like health care. […]
Immediate employment helps reduce the risk of recidivism and also gets people ready for full-time jobs and careers. […]
Training people in high-demand jobs through the Prison to Employment Initiative is a boon to employers and individuals. […]
The Prison to Employment Initiative benefits employers–both big and small–and job seekers, including those that want to own their own business.
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Training for high-demand jobs like commercial truck driving can be paid for by grants from the Prison to Employment Initiative. […]
Employers who participate in the Prison to Employment Initiative are eligible for financial incentives–and stand to gain skilled, loyal employees. […]
Employers can reap a variety of benefits when they hire justice-involved individuals through the Prison to Employment Initiative–both financially and in terms of skilled labor.
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Funded in part by the Prison to Employment Initiative, the California Workforce Development Board has collaborated with a multitude of state agencies to help incarcerated individuals secure a state job before their release. […]
Labor shortages in high-demand industries like construction can be eased when employers participate in the Prison to Employment program. […]
Since the pandemic, many industries–such as transportation–face labor shortages. The Prison to Employment Initiative is a big part of the solution.
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by Anne Stokes Shawn Ray Viramontes admits that he’s made some big mistakes. He’s also the first to own up to his responsibility in getting his life back on track. “If you make a mistake, […]
Mariah Nance was able to start a new life after her release from jail with help from the Workforce Development Board of Solano County.
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Erica Kucinskas struggled to find a job after release from prison–until she found help with a partner of the Workforce Development Board of Solano County. […]
by Anh Nguyen Fabiola Garcia-Almonaci works for the Employment and Training Division of Sonoma County. Her office oversees programs that are funded through the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, which receives funding to provide jobs […]
Employers can receive a wide array of financial incentives through the Prison to Employment Initiative, as well as dedicated and long-term employees. […]
There are benefits to employers who hire thought the prison-to-employment program, including tax credits and 50% of a new hire’s salary. […]
by Thea Marie Rood North Bay residents who have barriers to employment can find themselves trapped in cycles of poverty, which can impact entire generations or entire neighborhoods. This is especially true for people who […]
Employers in Sonoma County who hire through the prison-to-employment project can receive a wide range of benefits, including tax credits and 50% of a new hire’s salary. […]
“When I talk to employers, I tell them, ‘You’ll get a really good candidate—they are going to do everything they can to keep this job.’”
Nel Sweet Davis, employability specialist/caseworker
Workforce Development Board of Solano County […]
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