Major labor shortages are predicted by the end of this decade as baby boomers retire. In part this is due to a serious skills deficit that plagues the existing workforce, especially low-income workers. The Employment Program supports policy analysis and development, research, and advocacy that help low-income, low-skilled individuals connect to the labor market and advance to higher-paying jobs. Effective employer engagement is seen as critical to achieving this goal.
Program priorities are:
Advancing to Better Jobs
The goal of the Employment Program is to help low-income, low-skilled adults acquire the skills they need to advance to higher-paying jobs. Grantmaking includes:
a) Federal and State Policy Advocacy efforts to increase opportunities for low-income, low-skilled adults to acquire the skills needed to advance to better jobs. The Foundation is especially interested in proposals that focus on policy alignment between education and workforce systems; improvements to adult and remedial education; increased access to postsecondary occupational education; effective employer engagement; and the creation of new resources for adult worker occupationally focused education and training.
b) Shifting Gears, a Joyce Initiative launched in 2006 with the dual goal of: 1) strengthening state policies to enable low-income, low-skilled workers to acquire postsecondary occupational credentials and to move up in the labor market; and 2) promoting economic growth in the Midwest by addressing critical occupational labor shortages. The initiative is underway therefore new proposals are not accepted at this time.
c) Making the Case for investing in low-income, low-skilled adult workers. This funding will support communications research and strategic communications campaigns to build public and policy-maker support for education and skill building designed to advance low-income, low-skilled adults to higher paying jobs. The Foundation is especially interested in communications efforts that engage employer representatives as spokespeople.
d) Exploratory funding is available to support policy efforts in two areas:
- Access for low-income, low-skilled workers to jobs created in the new energy economy
- Advancement of low-income, low-skilled immigrants in the workforce through English language and skill acquisition
Transitional Jobs Reentry Demonstration
The Joyce Foundation is funding a research demonstration project to test whether transitional jobs programs are an effective employment strategy for recently released male prisoners. Research findings will be available in 2010. Additional funding will support related dissemination, communications, possible follow-on research, and advocacy. Unsolicited proposals will not be accepted for these activities. Other prisoner reentry projects are not being accepted at this time.
The Foundation does not provide operating support for direct services, such as job training or transitional jobs programs.
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