Workforce Warriors: Los Angeles Black Worker Center’s Bold Battle for Equity
By: UCLA CARE at Work, Los Angeles Black Worker Center, 1000 Strong Coalition
Work inequity is deeply intertwined with the issues of homelessness, incarceration, occupational segregation, and unemployment, all issues that disproportionately impact Black communities and are at the root of the Black jobs crisis. The 1000 Strong Coalition, anchored by the Los Angeles Black Worker Center (LABWC), posits that a full employment model, from training to job retention in public sector jobs, is a reliable solution to the longstanding Black jobs crisis in Los Angeles. The Coalition’s north star of building and strengthening pipelines for Black workers into public sector jobs led to the formation of the City of Los Angeles’ Workforce Demonstration (WED) Project.
The WED Project is a full employment model that codifies the City of Los Angeles’ commitment to a supported pathway for “good jobs” beyond entry-level roles and includes pre-apprenticeship and on-the-job training for Black workers. The City of LA’s Department of Public Works (DPW), responsible for public health infrastructure, has met this incredible opportunity to utilize a full employment model to both address this crisis and meet the needs for safe and clean spaces by hiring more Black workers. This intentional effort to hire and retain Black workers in unionized public sector jobs does two things: 1) positions Los Angeles as a leader in advancing racial equity, and 2) builds Black financial stability through quality unionized public sector employment.
“Workforce Warriors: Los Angeles Black Worker Center’s Bold Battle for Equity” evaluates the WED Project, a full employment model that codifies the City of Los Angeles’ commitment to a pathway to pre-apprenticeship and on-the-job training for Black workers.
Among other findings, the report notes:
- The WED Project has excelled at convening community, worker, union, and city partners to solve the Black jobs crisis in Los Angeles, with an 80% job retention rate for Black workers who accepted job offers.
- Four of the project’s five goals were met, including passing pre-employment, employment, and career advancement pathway policies through the Los Angeles City Council and Board of Public Works.
- The WED Project’s strength was the tailoring of the program to workers’ identities. LABWC was able to develop a program tailored specifically to the needs of various types of Black workers.
- Strategic partnerships between worker-led coalitions and the City of Los Angeles are foundational to the WED Project’s success. building a formal working coalition between the Worker Education and Resource Center (WERC), DWP, City of Los Angeles Workforce Development Board, LABWC, Los Angeles County Federation of Labor (LA Fed), SEIU 721, and AFSCME DC 36.
