Workforce Strategies

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Workforce Strategies

• For the 21st Century

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The Strategy
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Behind The Fence

• Incarcerated individuals are educated about
  services that will assist them during their
  transition out of incarceration (Jericho)
• Incarcerated individuals are assessed enrolled
  into transitional programs prior to release
  (Living Classrooms)

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Re-entry

• Housing support
• Job readiness
• Addressing personal barriers
• Financial Management
• Job Training referals

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Job Training Placement

• Life skills Job Readiness
• Technical skill development
• Internships
• Job searching
• Placement

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Living Classrooms

• Howard Wicker

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(No Transcript)
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Accomplishments
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Jericho

• Lara McNeil

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Episcopal Community Services of Maryland

• Jericho,
• America is the land of second chance and when
  the gates of the prison open, the path ahead
  should lead to a better life.

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An outline of the program

• Anger Management
• What is anger?
• Dealing with feelings
• What is action claps?
• What are beliefs?
• Anger cues
• Self Talk
• What has anger cost you
• My Anger Drama

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An outline of the program

• Prepare Cover Letter Resume
• What is a cover letter/resume?
• What are the components?
• Write a cover letter / resume
• Budgeting
• What is a budget benefits?
• Where does money go?
• Money saving tips
• How to keep your budget working
• Budget exercises

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An outline of the program

• Basic Skills
• Following instructions
• Accepting NO for an answer
• Talking with others
• Introducing yourself
• Accepting criticism / consequences
• Disagreeing appropriately

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An outline of the program

• Interviewing Techniques
• What is an interview/
• How to interview like a pro
• The 10 most common mistakes
• Be prepared to answer these questions
• Questions to ask the interviewer
• The 10-second rule
• Exercise Compose Personal Presentation Statement
• Mock Interviews

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An outline of the program

• Work Place Behavior
• What is Sexual Harassment?
• 6 Topics to avoid discussing at work
• Sharing too much information
• Does gossip have a place at work
• Workplace behavior quiz
• Job Search Strategies
• Prepare and assemble your job search tools
• Plan Your Campaign
• 10 things a job seeker should know

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Bmore Green

• Building Baltimores Brownfields Workforce

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Bmore Green

• Our mission is to serve the employment needs of
  Baltimore residents through environmental job
  training and brownfields employment development
  initiatives

• A brownfields workforce development program
  developed by Civic Works, a 501 (c ) 3
  organization and Baltimores service corps.
• Funded by an EPA brownfields job-training grant
  and the Abell Foundation

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What are brownfields?
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Brownfield

• A Brownfield is an abandoned, idle or
  underused industrial or commercial facility where
  expansion or redevelopment is complicated by real
  or perceived contamination.

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Baltimores Brownfields

• Since the 1960s Baltimore has seen a steady
  decline in the manufacturing industry
• This change in the local economy has resulted in
  job loss and an increase in commercial and
  industrial property abandonment

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Baltimores Brownfields

• 1,000 acres of brownfield sites in Baltimore.
• Revitalizing these lands could create an
  estimated 27,000 jobs.

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Typical Brownfield site

• American Can
• Baltimore City, Maryland

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Successful Project

• American Can after clean-up

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Baltimores Brownfields

• Baltimore has been designated by the federal
  government as one of 16 federal Brownfields
  Showcase Communities
• Brownfield Showcase Communities have access to
  federal resources which help to
• provide a cleaner environment
• expanded job opportunities
• Increase the tax base
• and preserve of open space

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EPAs brownfields job-training

• The EPA brownfields program
• ensures the recruitment of trainees from
  socio-economically disadvantaged communities
• provides quality worker-training
• allows local residents an opportunity to qualify
  for jobs developed as a result of brownfields
  efforts.

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The jobs
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Environmental Technology

• A career field that utilizes the principles of
  science, engineering, communications, and
  economics to protect and enhance safety, health,
  and natural resources.

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Positions available

• Lead Asbestos Abatement Technician
• Lead, mold, Asbestos removal containment
• Demolition in conjunction with abatement projects
• Environmental Field Technician
• Remediation and emergency response
• Hazardous waste clean-up and disposal
• Environmental site assessment, inspection and
  sampling

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Lead Abatement worker
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Asbestos Abatement Worker
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Environmental Field Technician
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The Training
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Bmore Green

• Environmental Health safety Certifications
• Non-certification training in environmental
  science and related topics
• Personal Empowerment Career Development
  Workshops

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The Curriculum

• Designed to meet employer needs
• Focused on Certifications
• Combination of hands-on exercises classroom
  instruction
• No prior experience or specialized knowledge is
  necessary
• Designed to address soft-skills as well as
  technical training

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Certifications

• Basic First Aid Adult CPR
• OSHA Construction Safety Orientation
• OSHA Confined Space Operations
• OSHA Hazardous Waste Site Worker
• MD Lead Abatement Worker
• EPA AHERA Supervisor
• Mold Abatement Worker

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Non-certification topics

• Brownfields Community Redevelopment
• Intro to local ecology a look at the Chesapeake
  Bay and MDs wetlands
• Phase I Phase II Environmental Site Assessments
• Job Readiness Employability Training
• Personal Professional Development

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Personal Professioanl Development

• Every class begins with an intensive Personal
  Professional Development session
• Addressing personal barriers to success and a
  meaningful life
• Building the foundation for success through
  conscious living affirmations
• Taking full responsibility for ones life
• Creating affirming life goals
• Mastering self presentation skills

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Personal Professional Development

• Trainees are video taped presenting themselves
• Videos demonstrate their initial self
  presentation challenges
• After trainees are provided with the tools to
  present communicate powerfully effectively,
  they are video taped again
• The process visually expresses the progress made

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Job Readiness Employability

• Resume development
• Job searching skills
• Interview skills
• Dressing for success
• The employer / employee contract
• The importance of punctuality reliability
• Attitudes habits for employee retention
• Financial literacy

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An Atmosphere of Employability

• All trainees are required to perform daily chores
• Trainees are issued policies procedures and
  sign an enrollment agreement
• Basic workplace standards are applied
• Punctuality and attendance are strictly enforced

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Instructors

• Environmental Professionals
• Civic Works Staff / OWDS
• Past Graduates
• Community Volunteers

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Hands-on learning
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Hands-on Learning
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Site visits
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Who are the trainees?
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Our Trainees

• Individuals who arent earning a living wage
• Formerly Incarcerated Individuals
• Transitioning military veterans veterans with
  barriers to employment
• Homeless individuals
• Middle aged career changers
• Young adults with little or no work experience

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All applicants must be

• Unemplyed or underemployed
• 18 or older
• Have a valid drivers license
• Drug free
• Cleared by a physician to wear a respirator

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Demographics

• We have enrolled 93 males 37 females
• 99 African American, 18 white, 5 Native American,
  4 other, 2 Latino American, 2 Asian American
• 63 have had a criminal record
• 41 have been military veterans
• Average age is 40 years old
• As of 9/30/2007

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Locating Trainees

• Outreach to Community based organizations
• Partnerships with the One Stop Career Centers
• Classified ads (City Paper, The Baltimore Guide,
  The Afro-American, The Examiner)
• Referrals from the office of parole probation
• Word of mouth

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Screening Trainees

• The most important step in the job placement
  process is the initial trainee selection
• Many applicants are attracted to the prospect of
  earning 12 to 16 per hour after a brief 5-7
  week period of training

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Threshold Qualifiers

• Attend an info session
• 18 or older
• Valid drivers license
• Negative drug test
• Physician approval to wear a respirator
• No conviction of a sex offense

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Additional Qualifiers

• 8th grade reading math level preferred
• High School Diploma / GED preferred
• Ability to lift 50 lbs
• Willing to work outdoors
• Willing to work in extreme temperatures
• Desire to work in a construction site environment
• Strong desire to succeed

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The Application Process

• Candidates respond to outreach
• All applicants must have a valid drivers license
  be 18 years old or older
• Attend a mandatory informational presentation
• Complete a written application
• Interview with project staff
• Pass a drug test respirator physical exam
• Submit to a background check

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Results
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Sustainable employment

• Average starting wage of 12-16 per hour
• Opportunities for advancement
• Benefits
• A career

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Job Placement

• Employers attend a career fair for Bmore Green
  graduates
• Employers attend a Civic Works hosted interview
  session to meet one-on-one with program graduates
• Program staff work with employers to refer
  graduates for specific career opportunities with
  partner employers

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Employers

• Triumvirate
• KS Environmental Solutions
• Arc Environmental
• ARC Construction Services
• Goel Services
• Power Component Systems, Inc.
• LVI Environmental

• Marcor Environmental
• URS Corporation
• EEC, Inc.
• Environmental Design Construction
• Clean Harbors
• Marcor Remediation
• BMW Construction
• Insulation Specialists, Inc.

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Since 2001

• Bmore Green has trained 150 participants
• 135 have graduated (as full-course-completers)
• 110 secured employment
• Still placing graduates of Bmore Green Spring
  2008

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Bmore Greens Results

• 2006 2007
• 70 participants enrolled
• 66 Graduated
• 61 Secured Employment

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Follow Up

• We track our trainees progress for a minimum of
  one year

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Individual Graduate Tracking

• 1 month, 4 month, 12 month scheduled graduate
  check-ins
• Periodic employer interviews regarding graduate
  progress
• Intensive one-on-one job placement assistance
  immediately following graduation

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Group Tracking

• The Bmore Green Alumni Association is a network
  of workers in the environmental field that all
  have Bmore Green in common
• Quarterly Alumni gatherings bring recent and past
  graduates together
• Quarterly Alumni newsletters update participants
  of program activities

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Retention Support

• Bmore Green staff provide one-on-one counseling
  as needed in response to on-the-job challenges or
  job-related challenges
• We are piloting a career mentor program that aims
  to connect recent graduates with professionals in
  the field

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The Career Mentor Program

• Aims to assist recent graduates during the
  transition into a new career field
• Will facilitate the process of navigating the
  career ladder
• Our Career Mentor pilot program has matched four
  recent graduates with professionals in the field

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The Career Mentor Program

• We are monitoring newly created mentor mentee
  relationships
• We are documenting the interactions between
  mentors and mentees
• The program will be evaluated quarterly to
  determine its effectiveness

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HAZARDOUS MATERIALS REMOVAL WORKERS

• Occupational Outlook

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Occupation Description

• Identify, remove, pack, transport, or dispose of
  hazardous materials, including asbestos,
  lead-based paint, waste oil, fuel, transmission
  fluid, radioactive materials, contaminated soil,
  etc. Specialized training and certification in
  hazardous materials handling or a confined entry
  permit are generally required. May operate
  earth-moving equipment or trucks.

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Job Outlook

• Employment of hazardous materials removal
  workers is expected to increase 27 or more for
  all occupations through the year 2014.
• -U.S Department of Labor Bureau of Labor
  Statistics

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State and National Wages
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Davis/Bacon Act Wage Determinations Building
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Bmore Green Graduates

• A closer look

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Roberta

• Age 24
• Situation Single Mother
• History
• Criminal record barrier to healthcare jobs,
  despite EKG Tech Certification
• 7.50/hr at McDonalds

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Roberta

• Graduated from Bmore Green Training Program June
  20, 2007
• Hired as an abatement worker, June 28, 2007
  earning 14/hr

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Stephen

• Age 22
• Situation Recently separated veteran
• History
• 7.50/hr at KFC
• U.S Marine Corps

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Stephen

• Graduated from Bmore Green Training Program
  April 2, 2007
• Hired April 9, 2007 earning 15/hr.
• Currently earning base pay of 16/hr
• High 24/hr at DC Military Base

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Jimmy

• Age 49
• Situation Ex-Offender

• History
• Convicted of 2nd degree homicide
• Currently on parole after 16 year incarceration
• Previous employment 8.00/hr Baltimore
  Auto-Recycling

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Jimmy

• Graduated from Bmore Green Training program
  April 2, 2007
• Hired as an abatement worker April 9, 2007
  earning 15/hr.

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Raymond

• Age 50
• Situation Homeless Veteran residing at MCVET
• History
• felony record as recent as 2004
• Unemployed for over 5 years

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Raymond

• Graduated from Bmore Green Training Program June
  20, 2007
• Hired by a union contractor as an abatement
  worker June 28, 2007 earning 12.44/hr plus union
  negotiated benefits
• Currently earning 14/hr and attending school at
  night to earn GED
• High 24/hr at Navy Yard

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Why it works

• The Key factors for success

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Partners Funders

• The Abell Foundation
• Environmental Protection Agency
• Urban Green Environmental
• Maryland Center for Veterans Education and
  Training (MCVET)
• One Stop career Centers
• The Way Station
• Baltimore Development Corporation (BDC)
• Baltimore Community for Environmental Justice
  (BCEJ)
• Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE)

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Keys To Success

• Training for a growing field with a high demand
  for entry-level certified workers
• Federal local financial resources
• Union non-union employer commitment
• Extensive multi-step screening process to select
  the right candidates

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Keys To Success

• Certifications, certifications, certifications!!
• Experienced Environmental Professionals as
  certification instructors
• Classroom learning, hands-on exercises site
  visits
• Project staff trained certified
• Job readiness instruction project facilitation
  provided by OWDS

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Keys To Success

• Life skills PPD to identify remove barriers
• Employability skills workshops, job retention
  training, financial literacy training
• Participant contracts daily chores to emphasize
  habits of accountability employability
• Alumni Program Mentor Program

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Workforce Strategies

• For the 21st Century