Program Associate: Manufacturing and Construction Trades

Working Partnerships USA Program Associate:
Manufacturing and Construction Trades San Jose, CA
· Full time Apply for Program Associate:
Manufacturing and Construction Trades

For 30 years, Working Partnerships USA has been at the forefront of the national movement for a just economy driven by the power of working people. The Program Associate will support the Director of Economic and Workforce Policy in a new, collaborative project to reshape the Bay Area’s blue-collar manufacturing industry by designing new models centered around the values of equity, high-road employment, sustainability and climate resilience, and shaped by workers and impacted community members themselves.

This project includes two components: convening and guiding a local Santa Clara and San Mateo workgroup to design and develop pilot projects to improve job quality and equity in manufacturing; and coordinating with a broader Bay Area High Road Manufacturing Initiative, co-led by Working Partnerships, the Blue Green Alliance, the UC Berkeley Labor Center, and New Energy Nexus. The Program Associate will also support our two construction pre-apprenticeships, TOP and TIP, as part of the Trades Programs team.

The Trades Programs support jobseekers from under-represented communities in Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties to enter apprenticeships and achieve a long-term, family-supporting career in the construction trades. The Trades Programs serve a wide range of community members, with a special emphasis on homeless individuals, women, communities of color, veterans, formerly incarcerated individuals, recipients of public assistance, and at‑risk youth.

The Program Associate may also be responsible for research, advocacy, outreach and administrative work on other projects supporting our efforts to achieve economic and racial justice in Silicon Valley. This position will initially be split approximately 50-50 between Manufacturing Futures and Trades Programs. That split may change in the future based on funding, program needs and the Program Associate’s interests and skills.

This role is part of the bargaining unit represented by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.

Working Partnerships USA is a community organization bringing together the power of grassroots organizing and public policy innovation to drive the movement for a just economy. Based in Silicon Valley, we tackle the root causes of inequality and poverty by leading collaborative campaigns for family-sustaining jobs, stable and affordable housing, healthy communities, and a democracy where all our voices are heard.

The ideal candidate will have experience working with and taking leadership from organizations led by workers of color; experience collaborating with business, labor, community, and government organizations; familiarity with Silicon Valley’s diverse communities; and a commitment to transformative power‑building for economic, racial and gender justice. Knowledge of businesses and workers in the manufacturing sector is also desirable.

Under the direction of the Director of Economic and Workforce Policy, the Program Associate’s responsibilities will include:

• Engaging with local business and union representatives to understand their workforce needs and hiring processes, work with them to build career pipelines for community members, and provide support to retain and grow their workforce.
• Research to understand the skills and experience required for different types of manufacturing jobs to be able to explain those career pathways to community members and to assess individual jobseekers for fit.
• Maintaining an up‑to‑date database of manufacturing job openings and requirements.
• Collaborating with educational and training partners to provide local manufacturing career pathway programs.
• Outreach and engagement with students, working adults, jobseekers, and other community members for potential recruitment into manufacturing and/or construction careers.
• Providing one‑on‑one coaching to jobseekers and program participants to help them set goals, overcome barriers, and navigate systems in order to pursue…