Public-housing residents to follow ‘Pathways to Green Jobs'

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After winning $690,000 in federal stimulus dollars to help public-housing residents train for and find ‘green jobs,’ workforce development initiative Opportunity Chicago announced the project’s partners as it prepares to launch the new effort.

“Pathways to Green Jobs” aims to help public-housing residents find career-path employment in the emerging ‘green’ sector.  It will build on the success of Opportunity Chicago, a collaborative public-private effort led by The Partnership that has placed nearly 6,000 public-housing residents in jobs since 2006.

The programs will be delivered by three providers – Heartland Human Care Services, Employment and Employer Services, and LEED Council – with the Chicago Housing Authority and City Colleges of Chicago also playing instrumental roles and Safer Pest Control Project providing consulting services.

Training will focus on two primary tracks – green building maintenance and cleaning, and Integrated Pest Management (IPM), a growing field that works to eliminate pests through environmentally-friendly measures and minimizes the use of chemicals.

As with all Opportunity Chicago programs, reading and math skills are integral to the curriculum, and participants receive support services to help them overcome other barriers to employment.

Ranging from seven to ten weeks, the programs will include a mix of classroom learning and hands-on training in carpentry, electrical work, plumbing, HVAC, flooring, grounds keeping and green cleaning.  Participants on the green building maintenance track will receive OSHA* training and become OSHA-certified. Those on the IPM track will prepare to take the Illinois State Pest Control licensing exam.

All participants will be paid for training, some of which includes a subsidized employment component that augments classroom instruction with real-world work experience. An estimated 135 public-housing residents will complete training; of those, 120 will be placed in unsubsidized employment, and 100 will earn an industry certification.

The best structure for this program was not always clear. Initial plans focused on weatherization and deconstruction careers, based on some preliminary data projecting employment growth in these areas.  However, after the Pathways program was approved, newer labor market data revealed that while growth was expected, the high number of unemployed and under-employed construction workers meant that few new weatherization and construction jobs would be available for low-skilled workers in Chicago.

As a result, The Partnership, CHA and other partners regrouped to assess what other green job opportunities held promise. Both the building maintenance and pest control fields showed a need for trained workers and growing employment opportunities. Additionally, both fields offer entry-level positions as well as career advancement pathways.

“’Pathways to Green Jobs’ will connect the real needs of employers and workers,” said Maria Hibbs, executive director of The Partnership. “It is also strategically aligned with Chicago’s plan to address climate change, and the important notion that we must make sure low-income people are among the beneficiaries of opportunities presented by the emerging green sector.”

The grant to Opportunity Chicago comes from Jobs for the Future (JFF), which received $8 million in federal stimulus money from the U.S. Department of Labor as part of $150 million dedicated to the department's "Pathways Out of Poverty" grants announced last year by U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis.

Chicago’s “Pathways to Green Jobs” is one of five JFF-funded programs across the country; while all programs target low-skilled, low-income individuals, Chicago’s is the only one dedicated to public-housing residents.

*U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration

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