When it comes to the workforce development landscape, the impact of COVID-19 cannot be overstated. The success of our programs this year come in spite of these tremendous obstacles—a testament to the transformative power of opportunity, the potential within the men we serve, and the efficacy of the Work Works model.
COVID-19 has hit the population that The Doe Fund serves disproportionately hard, particularly when factoring in job quality. Instead of improving throughout the year as adjustments to the pandemic were made, the situation has only gotten much worse. This is especially true in New York City compared to the rest of the country, and especially during the final months of 2020.
In January 2021, data from the New School Center for New York City Affairs painted a bleak reality for the industries most amenable to hiring the men we serve:
“December closed out 2020 with renewed job losses in New York City and the United States. From February to December, the city’s payroll job count was down 11 percent, more than twice the nation’s five percent loss. New York City ended the year with half a million fewer payroll jobs. When you add in losses by the self-employed and independent contractors, and factor in a likely downward revision in jobs numbers coming in March, the city will be out nearly 700,000 jobs in 2020.
The concentration of lost jobs in the face-to-face industries, particularly those dependent on tourism and the arts, is grim. The chart shows all of the face-to-face industries with the exception of retail trade and courier and messenger delivery jobs. In most industries, the NYC decline is twice as bad (or worse) as in the country as a whole.”
All this being said, New York City isn’t a barren wasteland of jobs, even for entry level or front-facing positions. As the City continues to reopen, there’s reason for hope that the market will improve.
For now, unfortunately, the current trend of employer engagement has centered on rapid-hiring and rapid-layoff cycles. The job quality currently in the entry level market remains low: much of the work is part-time or temporary, without benefits and, in the long run, extending instability and poverty.
The Doe Fund’s Workforce Development team has been innovating to mitigate these realities since the pandemic began. One way is through the introduction of skilled trades training in welding and carpentry. These fields are experiencing significant hiring deficits—the welding industry alone is expected to have a shortage of 400,000 workers by 2024—and our new pre-apprenticeship programs will provide a reliable pathway to upward mobility, union membership, great benefits, and job security.
The Workforce Development team also adapted its programs for “pandemic-proof” fields, such as by pivoting culinary sector job placements to institutional kitchens and emergency food delivery rather than in restaurants, as well as by prioritizing non-target sectors including home health aides, human services, and security. Meanwhile, the department created a remote learning infrastructure to move all its classes online, ensuring that trainees continue their progress after in-person learning was shut down.
Despite the challenges of 2020, the Workforce Development team celebrated many successes: on April 28th, we celebrated over 200 graduates who beat these odds to obtain employment and housing. Given the quick, drastic changes that we made to continue serving trainees in the “new normal,” we are especially proud of each and every success that the men achieved and of the staff who helped make those achievements possible. No matter what the future holds, The Doe Fund will always be there for the men we serve.