Leading Practices

An RFP that required applicants to submit job-quality data as part of the application process including pay, benefits and staff diversity as well as to describe their plan for incorporating the key elements of job quality into the program delivery approach.

A set of RFPs (1, 2) that evaluated applicants based on their alignment with the Department’s eight job quality principles, demonstrating job quality through adequate staffing, family-sustaining wages, career progression, safety measures and worker benefits and emphasizing worker input by engaging them in the grant proposal development phase. 

A set of job quality and equity requirements in The US Department of Transportation's RAISE (Rebuilding America's Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity) discretionary grant program. This program includes language urging applicants to (1) support the creation of good-paying jobs with the free and fair choice to join a union; (2) provide opportunities for all workers including those underrepresented in construction to be trained and placed in good-paying jobs directly related to the project; (3) use project labor agreements and/or local hire provisions, training and placement programs for underrepresented workers; and (4) adopt an "equity and inclusion program/plan" focused on "procurement, material sourcing, construction, inspection and hiring."

A set of standards to recognize high-road employers and reimburse workforce service providers based on job placement quality, not quantity. This strategy will track multiple job outcomes, including achievement of full-time work and wage growth, in addition to typical workforce development outcome measures like job placement, wage earnings and retention.

A program by the San Antonio Workforce Development Board to partner with local businesses to create industry-specific wage subsidy initiatives, such as the Healthcare Apprenticeship Initiative and the Cybersecurity Talent Pipeline Program, which trains and places hundreds of individuals in high-demand sectors.

A job quality framework released by Workforce SW Washington to preference vendors placing workers into quality jobs by defining standards, providing guidance and creating an actionable roadmap with metrics.

A 10-month Green Industry Workforce Development Program, called PowerCorpsBOS, that combines hands-on training, paid “earn and learn” opportunities for living-wage careers and connections to green industry employers for young adults.

A practice that prioritizes vendors with proven success in placing youth workers in living-wage jobs, while emphasizing partnerships offering wraparound services like mental health support, financial literacy and job retention strategies.

A private sector practice of collecting job quality and equity data as part of procurements. An employer, TriHealth, was experiencing continued pressure on reimbursements, requiring it to drive down costs, which was impacting its suppliers’ workers. To combat this, TriHealth used the bidders’ scores and results as part of its selection process, adding to its evaluation of long-term supplier reliability and worker equity.

An investment by the City of Philadelphia's Department of Commerce of $1.5 million through their Workforce Solutions Grant into a program aiming to prepare local job seekers for sustainable career pathways that offer living wages, focusing on addressing specific challenges faced by Black, brown and other historically disadvantaged residents as they enter the workforce.

A set of requirements in The US Department of Energy's Battery Materials Processing Grants program to create good-paying clean energy jobs such as those at or above prevailing wage, recruiting and hiring "local workers especially from underserved communities, properly classifying workers as employees, providing permanent jobs and predictable schedules, and delivering skilled workforce training."

The Texas Workforce Commission’s FY2022 operating budget projected revenues of $7,200,000,000 from administering the state’s Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, childcare, unemployment compensation, apprenticeship and state general funds, among other programs. These integrated funding streams, in addition to $183,000,000 in general fund investments, provide opportunities to launch job quality initiatives across multiple funding streams for Texas residents at different points in their employment and career paths.

A standard called the Better Builder Certification that defines job quality standards for public construction projects. These standards were defined by workers themselves through grassroots organizing with low-income construction workers of color, many of whom spoke limited English.

A practice of using Community Benefits Agreements (CBA) with employers to create manufacturing jobs through investments in workforce development and training programs, especially for historically disadvantaged people.

A procurement process that used outcome payments to incentivize job quality, embedded evaluation requirements as a mechanism to confirm progress and required that applicants submit a training plan, employment outlook and evidence that the training approach would achieve good jobs a part of the submission process.

A practice that requires contractors to secure jobs with a minimum annualized wages of $65,000 for participants, while offering access to supportive services. Includes technical and professional development in program curricula, and prioritizes outreach to underserved groups for equitable representation in the tech workforce.

A Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Title youth procurement which set aside funds to serve youth with the highest rates of youth disconnection, including Black youth, based on the results of local research and public input.