Training Partnership Featured in University of Washington Panel on Workforce Development

SEIU 775 Benefits Group recently participated in a 美国华盛顿大学 panel discussion on training, workforce development and income inequality hosted by the Harry Bridges Center for Labor Studies, UW Seattle .?

On Wednesday, October 12, leaders from seven union-affiliated and independent organizations from across Washington gathered for the online panel discussion, “Can Workforce Development Reduce Income Inequality?". Panelists represented job training in a variety of sectors, including child care, health care, construction, grocery and trade. SEIU 775 Benefits Group was represented by Amy Persell , Managing Director of the Training Partnership.

During the course of the panel, Amy addressed issues that can impede workforce development training, as well as what the Benefits Group is doing to address them.?

For example, Amy uplifted the reality that caregivers often lose their jobs when a client moves into a nursing home or passes away. To address this, SEIU 775 Benefits Group offers opportunities to complete caregiver training after they’ve lost their client. This type of training can not only support caregivers during professional fluctuations, but these home care certifications mean pay increases for a job that is highly in-demand in Washington and across the country.?

Amy also pointed to the importance of SEIU 775 Benefits Group’s commitment to providing training to caregivers in their own language through localization, or translation with a culturally competent lens. This applies not only to curriculum but to outreach and onboarding materials, communications and course-related text messages. As she underscored, “I don’t know of any other occupations in Washington state where someone doesn’t need to know English to earn union wages and union benefits with a career pathway.”?

“I don’t know of any other occupations in Washington state where someone doesn’t need to know English to earn union wages and union benefits with a career pathway.”?

Finally, Amy shared several ways caregivers are put at the center of creating and designing training opportunities. These include peer mentorship, integrating caregiver feedback into the development of continuing education courses and the creation of an Advanced Home Care Aide certification that supports wage progression.?

Throughout the panel, participants underscored the fact that the work of building equitable workforce development pathways requires intentional work to rethink traditional models. They emphasized additional progress will not only require the ongoing innovative work of organizations like those gathered, but federal and state investments that will bring about greater racial and economic equity within and beyond the scope of workforce development.?