Chicago manufacturing jobs a big focus

Posted on August 4, 2015

Chicago manufacturing jobs are the main focus for Chicago currently.

A new workforce initiative, the 1000 Jobs for Chicagoland Manufacturing campaign, is committed to connecting 1,000 Chicagoans to open manufacturing careers, through direct placements or linking residents who need additional skills to training and apprenticeship programs.

Over the last three years, the manufacturing sector has curbed a 30-year decline in jobs, but there are not enough skilled workers to meet current demand.

With more than 20,000 open positions in manufacturing in the Chicagoland area, 1000 Jobs launched in January 2015 to address the growing workforce gap. 1000 Jobs for Chicagoland Manufacturing campaign is a demand-driven workforce development program that puts workers on a path to a manufacturing career, whether that be placement in open positions or training.

1000 Jobs also works with five community based organizations embedded throughout Chicago to work with residents on the ground and spread the word about careers in manufacturing, ultimately putting people to work. Account Executives within the organizations work with job seekers individually to place them in jobs or connect them to training programs. These organizations include:
• Bethel New Life – a non-profit organization focused on bringing individuals and families out of poverty, as well as creating policies and instituting social reforms that have the power to uplift whole communities and give them a better life.
• Instituto Del Progresso Latino – an organization which aims to provide Latino and Latina immigrants with the tools they need to succeed.
• Kinzie Industrial Development Corporation – a 501(c)(3) affiliate of the Industrial Council of Nearwest Chicago (ICNC), that seeks to strengthen companies in the Kinzie Industrial Corridor and to facilitate economic and community development.
• OAI, Inc. – a non-profit training and education agency focused on enhancing the manufacturing industry in the Millennium Reserve/Calumet Region.
• The Safer Foundation – a non-profit organization that seeks to reduce the rate of recidivism through a variety of services that help people with criminal records become employed and upstanding, law-abiding citizens.