While recent unemployment percentages in Marion County are comparable to those seen pre-pandemic, unemployment and underemployment can still be a stressful experience for individuals in that situation. 

As the workforce development board for Marion County, EmployIndy is committed to ensuring all Marion County residents have access to the services and training necessary to secure a livable wage and grow in a career that meets employer demand for talent. In spite of or incidental to macro trends in unemployment numbers, an EmployIndy initiative has had success placing job seekers who are feeling the stress of unemployment or underemployment at companies who need their talent. 

“Wednesdays@WorkOne”, a free weekly hiring event at EmployIndy’s full-service center on Indianapolis’ east side, WorkOne Indy, has been boasting an average of nearly 100 job seeker attendees per week. These job seekers are taking advantage of the opportunity to network with the roughly 20 unique hiring employers who attend on a regular basis. 

“Word is definitely getting out that we’re here,” Associate Director of Career Services, Bryan Spellman, said. “And we get a lot of returning employers.” 

Spellman said that in 2022, the hiring event attracted a total of more than 3,000 job seekers and about 225 employers, which resulted in more than 1,000 hires, a number that gets reported back from attending companies. 

In 2023, the hiring event continues to build upon the successes of last year. Just 6 months into the year, Wednesdays@WorkOne has already exceeded half of last year’s number of circulating individuals. It helps that about four new businesses are also showing up per week—at least one indicator that there are still jobs out there to be found—and at least 560 people have landed a job from their interactions with those employers so far this year. 

The industries that are represented at the hiring event are impressive and diverse: from healthcare and transportation to manufacturing, maintenance, childcare, culinary, banking, and others. EmployIndy recently spoke with a couple of those employers about what keeps them coming back to Wednesdays@WorkOne. 

Barrett & Stokely, a property management company with more than forty housing complexes across Indiana, has become a regular attendee. Talent Acquisition Specialist Carol Cashen said she tries to attend at least one Wednesdays@WorkOne per month in an effort to fill roles like Property Managers, Maintenance Technicians, and Groundskeepers. Interested job seekers can find a list of Barrett & Stokely current openings here. 

Meanwhile, First Student Recruiter Kelly Woods also felt strongly about the value Wednesdays@WorkOne provides to her company. She said she has been coming every two weeks for about two years because of the number of applications—for Indianapolis Public Schools’ Bus Monitor and Bus Driver roles—she receives because of the event. The company provides paid CDL B training, and open positions can be found here. 

EmployIndy oversees the operations of WorkOne Indy, an American Job Center, at 4410 North Shadeland Avenue on Indianapolis’ east side. The career services, training, and talent connection resources available to job seekers at WorkOne Indy uplifts EmployIndy’s strategic plan theories of change: Coaching + Training and Talent Connection. To learn more about EmployIndy’s commitment to scale quality interventions that lead to economic mobility, check out our recently released 2023-2025 Strategic Plan. 

The Wednesdays@WorkOne hiring event is held every Wednesday from 11:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. and is open to the public. No registration is required. Businesses looking to fill their open positions via this hiring event can receive registration information by sending an email to bspellman@nullemployindy.org. 

INDIANAPOLIS – EmployIndy, Marion County’s Workforce Development Board and local workforce intermediary, is excited to announce its acceptance into the U.S. Department of Labor’s first ever cohort of the Job Quality Academy. The Job Quality Academy, designed and operated in partnership with Jobs For the Future (JFF), will provide EmployIndy the opportunity to build a greater understanding of job quality principles, how to incorporate them into their policies and programs, and develop methods and tools for assessing progress.

Good jobs are the foundation of an equitable economy that lifts workers and families and makes businesses more competitive, but many Americans lack work that provides them with decent pay, benefits, safety, or hours that allow them to take care of both their work and home responsibilities. These problems are even more pronounced for workers from historically marginalized communities and in certain industries, such as hospitality and the care economy.

The U.S. Departments of Labor and Commerce identified principles of a good job, which include equitable recruitment and hiring; benefits; diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA); empowerment and representation; job security and working conditions; organizational culture; pay; and skills and career advancement. A good job is one that helps workers achieve economic stability and mobility, while prioritizing diversity and worker voice.

“We know the Job Quality Academy will add even more momentum to our efforts around good jobs, that we’ve outlined in our recently launched three-year strategic plan as well as the implementation of our Choice Employers initiative,” said Marie Mackintosh, president and CEO of EmployIndy. “Marion County businesses will be competitive and thrive when they invest in job quality and wage equity practices, leading to an increase in the number of good jobs in our regional economy and more prosperous workers.”

As expectations on employers to offer quality jobs in Central Indiana are rising, EmployIndy has recently launched its Choice Employers initiative to help Marion County organizations find the right combination of actions to reduce turnover, offer a strong company culture, and be considered an ideal place to work. Through the Good Wages Initiative, a pillar of Choice Employers, EmployIndy has already certified over 70 local employers, representing 18 industries and nearly 25,000 workers, who have committed to increasing worker wages by $5.1M.

With the additional three pillars of the Choice Employer initiative including Culture and Diversity, Employee Supports, and Career Pathways, EmployIndy will utilize the learnings and best practices from the Job Quality Academy to strengthen and increase its impact locally.

Launched in Spring 2023 and set to span roughly 6 months, including two 3-day in-person summits in Washington, DC, the Job Quality Academy comprises up to 16 teams, including workforce boards, state workforce boards, state workforce agencies, and tribal organizations, representing communities across the nation. To maximize learning, EmployIndy has invited representatives from three local employer partners, B&W Plumbing and Heating, IEC-Indy, and UA Local 440, to join them for the duration of the academy. With construction industry roles in high-demand, EmployIndy’s Job Quality Academy team chose these partners in order to produce a template that is replicable throughout all industries.

To learn more about the Job Quality Academy, visit www.jff.org/job-quality-academy. To learn more about becoming a Choice Employer in Marion County, visit www.employindy.org/choice-employers or contact Lora Steele at lsteele@nullemployindy.org.

INDIANAPOLIS – April 17, 2023 – This morning, Mayor Joe Hogsett, City-County Council President Vop Osili, EmployIndy, and community partners announced the launch of YES Indy’s new Re-Engagement Center (REC), located at Watkins Park. EmployIndy’s “Youth Employment System”, YES Indy, established the REC model to provide safe spaces where “Opportunity Youth” – residents ages 16-24 who have disconnected from education and/or employment – can participate in open gym basketball and get connected to career services. 

“The more accessible we can make post-secondary education and employment, the more people will choose that path,” said Mayor Joe Hogsett. “By addressing significant barriers to school and jobs, the new YES Indy REC at Watkins Park makes resuming your education or professional ambitions easier for residents of the northwest side.” 

In Central Indiana, there are an estimated 30,000 Opportunity Youth who are not engaged in education and or the workforce. Since the launch of the first YES Indy REC in 2018 at the Finish Line Boys & Girls Club, 2,476 young people have registered for open gym sessions, with 240 having been entered into the YES Indy system where they have received barrier-busting support (such as vouchers for child care, legal assistance, housing, or transportation), career services, and connection to education, training, and job opportunities. 

“In alignment with our strategic plan, YES Indy RECs are a tangible way EmployIndy seeks to promote equity and remove barriers to quality employment for underrepresented residents,” said Rev Rodney Francis, EmployIndy Chief Programs Officer. “As the importance of postsecondary training has grown, coaching and connection to career services have become even more vital to navigate options and persist through to completion.”

A major factor in the success of the REC model, and in particular the Watkins Park REC, is EmployIndy’s work to build collaborative partnerships with community organizations. Through a partnership with Indy Parks and Recreation, young people now have a space on the northwest side to get engaged and reconnect to education or the workforce through YES Indy. And through neighboring YES Indy provider Flanner House as well as service provider Training for Success LLC, career services and support are nearby to help them take that next step in their professional journey.  

“After having spent some time attending a university, and feeling it wasn’t a good fit, I found myself working several hourly jobs, with not much direction,” said Chance Blackwell, YES Indy Watkins Park REC participant. “Getting connected to Flanner House through the REC has been helpful as I look to pursue my EMT certification and use those skills to help others.”

Once engaged at the Watkins REC, young people also have the opportunity to enroll in the YES Indy Power Huddle, a two-week job readiness experience where they will learn to foster a growth mindset, as well as earn two Job Ready Indy badges: Mindsets and Social Skills. During the Power Huddle, participants reframe their view of their own future and are introduced to opportunities available through YES Indy, such as achieving their high school equivalency, working with a career coach, enrolling in training, and being connected to employment opportunities. Since 2018, 423 young people have participated in the Power Huddle program.

To make these collaborative efforts possible, EmployIndy has worked to combine funding from the City of Indianapolis and The Indianapolis Foundation (with supporting funds from the federal American Rescue Plan Act), through the Elevation Grant Program. 

“By creating opportunities for youth to feel not only safe, but seen, trust is being built in spaces that systemically and historically have pushed them aside,” said Pamela Ross, Vice President of community leadership and equitable initiatives for The Indianapolis Foundation. “The result is youth who are more open, which allows the community to thrive.”

The YES Indy REC at Watkins Park will host open gym sessions on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM. Residents interested in learning more about this REC location and available services are invited to attend a public open house on Saturday, April 22nd at 10:00 AM, that will feature a basketball tournament and the chance to connect with several local organizations, such as Indy Parks, that will have information on employment and training opportunities. For questions regarding the April 22nd open house, email Tawnya McCrary at trainingforsuccessllc1@nullgmail.com.

Youth and young adults can learn more about YES Indy services or connect to a YES Indy service provider at yesindy317.org.