Partnerships

Partnerships are Essential

Across the country, collaboratives like the Detroit Regional Workforce Fund are investing in industry-led workforce partnerships that create long-term relationships between employers and service providers to help improve the workforce development system. These partnerships also create opportunities to effect change in the region’s strategic workforce vision, and align public and private resources in new ways around workforce development.

Through its innovative partnerships, the Detroit Regional Workforce Fund brings together employers in the same industry to identify common talent needs with entities such as community colleges and training providers that can develop and implement sector-based workforce training initiatives/programs. This creates a vehicle for low-income, low-skilled workers to have access to long-term, sustainable careers that will in turn help drive regional economic stability.

The Detroit Regional Workforce Fund’s current partnership focus is on creating opportunities between employers in the health and green economy sectors.

Initial Detroit Regional Workforce Fund partnership investments include:

• $640,000 training grant for a partnership to train 105 individuals in skills needed for hazardous waste remediation
• A $300,000 (potentially renewable) grant for a partnership between a non-profit training organization and green manufacturing employers to produce entry-level green manufacturing workers
• $97,000 planning grant to a partnership between five health care systems and three community colleges to design a career ladder for current entry-level workers to increase their skills and move into higher-wage, higher demand allied-health positions.