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OCTOBER 2023
WORKFORCE
CHRONICLES
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Happy October and happy birthday month to me! October is Manufacturing Month and Wisconsin Tech Month, celebrations of two high-demand industries that together employ nearly 20% of our state. Our team at Employ Milwaukee works closely with stakeholders within both of these industries to develop solutions to create a more equitable and prosperous workforce landscape. This aligns with Employ Milwaukee’s dual mission of serving both job seekers and employers to ensure that Milwaukee and the surrounding areas are equipped with a skilled and sustainable workforce for the 21st Century. To serve both groups, Employ Milwaukee convenes stakeholders and continuously analyzes labor market data and trends to implement strategies that will ensure job seekers are trained for quality jobs that employers are hiring for. | |
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Our Planning and Fund Development team at Employ Milwaukee pursues opportunities to make these strategies happen by seeking out related funding and aligning ourselves with partners that will serve our community's unique needs now and for years to come. I’m excited to share one recent way this has happened is through a $4.9 million Department of Labor Building Pathways to Infrastructure grant our agency was awarded to fund Skills to Build, a program that will prepare nearly 500 historically underserved individuals across Southeastern Wisconsin for high-demand infrastructure careers in renewable energy, transportation, and broadband. Skills to Build incorporates broad partnerships and training opportunities to appeal to individual interests and specific employer needs: participants can develop manufacturing skills at Moraine Park Technical College’s Manufacturing, Automation, and Robotics Lab in West Bend, receive on-the-job training in Information Technology through MKE Tech Hub Coalition in Milwaukee, or work towards a Civil Engineering technical diploma at Milwaukee Area Technical College, among other pathways Skills to Build will offer participants. These training opportunities align with massive Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding coming into our area and will allow Southeastern Wisconsin to expand to new heights.
Skills to Build is just one example of how our Employ Milwaukee intentionally aligns ourselves with the people and opportunities to move our community forward. I want to thank my team for continuously expanding the capacity of Employ Milwaukee, even when it seems difficult to do so. As the Workforce Development Board serving Milwaukee County, our capacity will never be met until every community member is gainfully employed and employers have no job openings. Until that happens, you will continue to see Employ Milwaukee creating workforce solutions for the betterment of our city!
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AGENCY UPDATE
Second Annual Fundraiser
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FUNDING UPDATE
Department of Labor Grant Awards!
Employ Milwaukee is excited to announce the recent awards of two Department of Labor grants totaling $7.5 million coming into Southeastern Wisconsin.
The Department of Labor Building Pathways to Infrastructure grant awarded Employ Milwaukee $4.9 million. This funding will allow Employ Milwaukee to launch Skills to Build, a program that will prepare nearly 500 historically underserved individuals over five years for high-demand infrastructure occupations across Southeastern Wisconsin over the next five years. Skills to Build will regionally scale existing sector training programs with established partners and train diverse job seekers in a variety of high-demand, family-sustaining occupations that support the growing sectors of renewable energy, transportation, and broadband infrastructure. Employ Milwaukee’s Skills to Build program will meld together evidence-based strategies, local industry needs, and worker voices to create a strong and equitable infrastructure workforce in Southeastern Wisconsin that fills the high demand of jobs created by extraordinary federal investments. We are excited to collaborate with a variety of partners, including Milwaukee Area Technical College, MKE Tech Hub Coalition, Brew City Help Desk International, WOW Works Workforce Development Board, Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development and many employers, worker organizations, and training providers.
Employ Milwaukee will receive $2.6 million through the Department of Labor's Critical Sector Job Quality grants for Serve MKE: Quality Jobs for Hospitality Workers to increase job quality for in-demand hospitality jobs in downtown Milwaukee. Jobs in the hospitality sector are historically low-skill positions with low pay and minimal benefits, filled primarily by people of color and economically disadvantaged populations who face systemic barriers in reaching advancement opportunities. Serve MKE is a three year program that will convene hospitality workers, worker organizations, and local hospitality employers to implement worker-centered strategies that will allow historically marginalized populations to obtain gainful, quality employment in high-demand hospitality occupations that center the Dept. of Labor Good Jobs Principles. Serve MKE is built on proven, strategic partnerships and evidence-based strategies to ensure all hospitality workers in the greater Milwaukee area have good working conditions and opportunities for personal and professional success while industry employers can retain their workforce to support a growing city.
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STATE OF LABOR
State of the Labor Market Brief
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Employ Milwaukee is your expert on the labor market in Milwaukee County. See below for the latest metrics. | |
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SECTOR SPOTLIGHT
Manufacturing Pathways
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SUCCESS STORY
A New Beginning
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Yevhan S. (left) and BankWork$ Manager Jovo Potkonjak (right) | |
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When war broke out in Ukraine in February 2022, Yevhan S. knew it wouldn’t end quickly, as many had initially predicted. He and his wife and two teenage daughters were living in the capital city of Kyiv and thought they would be relatively safe there, particularly when compared to those living in the eastern region of the country. It didn’t take them long, however, to realize that life would never be the same for them.
Yevhan is considered one of the lucky ones as his parents had legally immigrated to the United States in 2000, and had settled in Milwaukee, WI. He was able to secure work authorization for he and his wife, and late spring, 2022, Yevhan and his family settled in Milwaukee with his parents. Yevhan and his wife immediately began to search for work.
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Yevhan had a career in banking when he lived in Ukraine. He was a Branch Network Manager with a bank there, supporting a number of branches. But, he didn’t have experience in the U.S. banking system, so when he saw the BankWork$ training on Employ Milwaukee’s website, he quickly signed up for a pre-screening interview and was accepted in the program that began on April 11th. He successfully completed the BankWork$ training (certified pre-apprenticeship) on June 1, 2023.
“I was so impressed with the diversity of the students in my class,” Yevhan said. “The Instructor (Adrienne Wright) brought banking experience to her teaching role, and the other staff, Jovo (Potkonjak) and Oscar (Delgado) helped me find other resources to help me succeed. But, it was really the other students in the classroom that inspired me the most to graduate. They really helped me with my conversational English skills”, Yevhan commented. “I am really looking forward to rebuilding my life here and using my banking skills”.
“Yevhan was so eager to translate his previous banking skills to the U.S. financial job market,” said Jovo Potkonjak, BankWork$ Manager. “There’s no doubt he will be successful here. We are so pleased that we could help this immigrant and his family through the Skillful Transitions (WAI) grant that funded his training.”
Yevhan's hard work paid off at the end of August, when he was hired as an Associate Banker at BMO Harris Bank.
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Upcoming Opportunities and Events! | |
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Milwaukee Water Works Community Project
Interested in a starting your career in an essential municipal service field? The Milwaukee Water Works Community projects has four training tracks to train workers for stable, well-paying jobs.
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Winning with Wisconsin's Workforce Q4 - Southeast
Come join us for Winning with Wisconsin's Workforce in Southeast Wisconsin! The event will take place at 11:30 a.m. on Oct. 31, 2023, at Palermo's Headquarters in Milwaukee. Business representatives, community leaders, and workforce development professionals will be discussing technology and training programs in Southeast Wisconsin, including Wisconsin Fast Forward-funded technical education and customized training programs, grant application processes and timelines, local recipient success stories, and more. Don't miss this chance to connect with local workforce development leaders to gain insights into grant opportunities and workforce training resources in your area. Register now and secure your spot at this exciting event!
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Cream City YouthBuild
Are you interested in learning construction and leadership skills, road-building, and accessing well-paying employment? Are you a high school drop-out who wants to get your HSED/GED? If so, Cream City YouthBuild may be for you! Cream City YouthBuild prepares young adults for careers and employment in the construction industry through a focus on attaining a high school diploma and construction skills while receiving exposure and access to employment in the construction trades.
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NEXT MONTH!
SAVE THE DATE: November 15th – QUEST Early Childhood Education Grant Launch at MATC – Details coming soon!
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HIRING CORNER
Looking for a career in workforce development? Come join us at Employ Milwaukee! We are currently on the lookout for ‘go-getter’ talent to join our A-Team at the agency in the following areas:
- Senior Contract Compliance Specialist
- Program Specialist
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For more information about
Employ Milwaukee’s programs
and services, please visit: www.employmilwaukee.org
or call (414) 270-1700.
Employ Milwaukee is an Equal Opportunity Employer/Service Provider and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, or sex. Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to
individuals with disabilities or language needs.
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