By
December 7, 2009

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa hosted U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis and White House Director of Urban Affairs Adolfo Carrion on a tour November 24 of the Los Angeles Trade Technical College and a discussion of the city's successful workforce training programs. The visit was part of the White House Office of Urban Affairs' National Conversation on the Future of America's Cities and Metropolitan Areas, which is examining innovations in workforce development training in urban areas.

"Here in Los Angeles, we understood that preparing our workforce for living wage jobs meant developing a unified system and coordinating various levels of government with non profit and private partners," Villaraigosa said. "We have implemented a strategy that recognizes the high'growth, high'wage industries that will lead our recovery efforts and that provides Angelenos with the tools they need to secure well paying careers. I am proud to be at LA Trade Tech today with our partners from Washington to showcase the types of training programs, the skills and the sectors we are investing in."

Officials from the White House Office of Urban Affairs were interested in how Los Angeles has created a regional workforce development system that coordinates various levels of government and private partners. The Los Angeles Workforce Development Model relies on the following partnerships: private sector employers; organized labor; community'based organizations; faith'based community; city agencies and other public organizations.

The workforce strategy in Los Angeles has demonstrated that by working together through a Systems Collaborative, the city can ensure that the growing economy has a skilled labor force to meet its evolving needs and that Angelenos, especially youth who are out of work and out of school, have the opportunity to train for and secure well paying careers in the city and regional economy. Sectors that are targeted include: health care; construction/green; utilities/green; hospitality; transportation/logistics; security; public sector; and financial services.