Given the uncertain nature of the economy and current job training reform efforts undertaken by the 104th Congress, NACo’s Employment and Training Program advocates the tailoring of customized job training programs and partnerships between large corporations and counties’ employment and training programs across America.
In Los Angeles County (Calif.), that view has found fertile ground. Operated under the auspices of the county board of supervisors and the private industry council (PIC), the Los Angeles County Employment and Training Program provides a variety of job training possibilities through a service delivery system involving more than 60 educational and community-based organizations.
The Los Angeles County Service Delivery area (SDA) is one of the largest in the nation, with approximately 400,000 adults eligible for job training services funded by the Job Training Partnership Act (JTPA) in the area.
The Customized Training Project (CTP) is “an opportunity that businesses cannot afford to pass up,” said Ken Kessler, director of Los Angeles County Employment and Training Programs.
One of the large employers already taking advantage of this innovative project is Pep Boys, a giant auto parts supermarket with hundreds of stores spread around the nation.
Pep Boys has established a new expansion plan for opening 40 to 60 stores within the next few years in the greater Los Angeles County area. The county and Pep Boys have entered into an agreement to use the model CTP recruitment and job training program to create career opportunities in communities throughout Los Angeles where new and existing Pep Boys, Parts USA and Supercenters stores will be located.
The partnership anticipates hiring and training approximately 2,000 to 3,000 employees from the county. The partnership wants to place qualified candidates in sustainable careers in the retail industry. In the first year, 10 to 15 new stores will be opened.
In the following 36 months, the number of stores will reach as many as 40. This expansion will create several thousand new jobs in the county in addition to the jobs the company already has established through its 40 existing stores.
To meet the demands of opening new stores and to continue staffing existing stores, Pep Boys needs a reliable source of new, well-trained employees to become part of its permanent workforce, explained Alan Dean, development director for the auto parts firm. In doing so, Pep Boys has turned to the Los Angeles County SDA and PIC for assistance in developing the customized recruiting and job training program.
The county will provide intake, assessment, case management and support services, in addition to classroom training.
Pep Boys and the county have developed a customized job training program to meet all of the standards of Pep Boys positions. When participants successfully complete training, they are placed in a full-time, permanent position. The partnership trains for basic sales, automotive, cashiering and management positions.
Several other large employers are now discussing the possibility of establishing similar training programs with the county. The success of the program in attracting companies is the result of a proactive attitude by the county and the PIC, said Tony Gomez, assistant director of Los Angeles County Employment and Training Programs.
The CTP is only one of several innovative programs being tested or operated by the Los Angeles County SDA. Others include:
a defense conversion assistance project that provides basic readjustment, retraining and job placement services to laid-off aerospace and defense industry workers
two centralized client-intake centers that provide comprehensive job training services, including intake, assessment, remedial education, and supportive and case management services from a single location
a new JOBLINKS project which will provide preapprenticeship training to individuals 18 to 30, and upon completion, place them in federally funded earthquake recovery jobs,
and a voucher system that permits a wide range of training opportunities for JTPA participants, particularly displaced aerospace and defense industry workers.
(For more information about job training programs in Los Angeles County, contact Ken Kessler, Los Angeles County Employment and Training Programs 213/738-2620.)
(County Services News was written by Antonio Sanchez, research associate.)