10/25/2018
Save the Date!
Reentry Employment Workshop
For Those Working or Wishing to Work in Reentry Employment
at the LA Trade Tech WorkSource Center
It will be a morning program but time and cost TBD
Topics covered will include: LA Fair Chance Initiative, Ban the Box and Background Checks presented by Root and Rebound with a special expert panel on best practices for applicants, job developers and speaking with employers.
More info coming soon!
Wed, September 26, 2018
9:00 AM – 12:00 PM PDT
Los Angeles Valley College
5800 Fulton Avenue
Campus Center's Monarch Hall
Valley Glen, CA 91401
Empower L.A. Culinary Training School
Empower L.A. is the L.A. Kitchen's free 14-week culinary training program. The students, who are transitional age youth (18-24) or were either formerly incarcerated or formerly homeless, receive kitchen and classroom instruction from the L.A. Kitchen's chefs and from leading industry professionals. Empower L.A. students attend classes in professional development, life skills and nutrition and also receive case management and advocacy services.
The L.A. Kitchen reclaims an average of 8,000 pounds of produce every week from wholesale distributors and farmers. As part of their training, students spend time in Impact L.A. where they work side-by-side with intergenerational volunteers to produce an average of 2,800 meals and 1,500 healthy snacks on a weekly basis. Those meals and/or snacks are distributed to over 30 different organizations focused on youth empowerment, reentry programs, homeless recovery and senior engagement.
Empower L.A. students also receive training in Strong Food, the L.A. Kitchen's social enterprise. Strong Food, produces high-quality, locally sourced meals, snacks and food products. The goal of Strong Food is to source and serve healthy food in a way that provides strong social returns, employment opportunities and net profit to reinvest into the L.A. Kitchen's job training program.
The L.A. Kitchen's new Seed to Sky programconnects community gardens across Los Angeles to LAX by sourcing produce from local community-led gardens for its line of healthy grab & go options at LAX airport. The funds are reinvested to transform underutilized community gardens into thriving farms, to empower South L.A.'s youth to run food businesses and to create new job opportunities.
The L.A. Kitchen now employs 16 Empower L.A. graduates (12 in Strong Food and 4 in Impact L.A.). And, we are very proud to announce the nomination of the first Empower L.A. graduate to the L.A. Kitchen's Board of Directors. Congratulations to Class 7 alumnus, Carlos Fuentes!
The L.A. Kitchen's innovative program helps to empower, nourish and engage the community while reducing unemployment, food waste, recidivism and other barriers to success. We believe that neither food nor people should ever go to waste!
We are currently accepting applications for Class 17 begins on January 15th and we will start taking applications on November 12th! For information on the recruitment process or on becoming a referral agency partner, please contact empowerLA@lakitchen.org.
LA Chamber and LA County Fair Chance Hiring Campaign
Fair ChanceHiring Campaign Flyer 
The LA Chamber's Smart Justice team is launching a Fair Chance Hiring Campaign to connect young adults facing workforce-related barriers with quality, entry level internships. The internship opportunities will span two months, include fully subsidized wages, and candidates will be vetted by both the LA Chamber of Commerce and LA County. In addition, all interns will receive ongoing training, support and mentorship opportunities.
Should you be interested in receiving more information, please reach out to Lisa Small at lsmall@lachamber.com
Employment Reentry Tools
New Roads to Second Chances:
Want to Work? Chrysalis can Help!
Chrysalis
is looking for workers for New Roads, a transitional job and job placement program for formerly incarcerated men and women currently on parole or probation. The program is made possible by a partnership between the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and the City of Los Angeles Mayor’s Office of Reentry, and is managed by Chrysalis. Chrysalis is a job preparation agency designed to help individuals find, get, and keep a job.
Interested participants can go to a Chrysalis orientation at any of our three locations, 8:00 am Monday – Thursday. If you have any questions, please feel free to email Joseph Wise, Project Manager for Roads at joseph.wise@changelives.org
Whole Person Care – Los Angeles (WPC–LA)
The Whole Person Care Program is Hiring
The following positions are available and will serve as the Capacity-Building and Collaboration Team for the Whole Person Care Program.
- Regional Coordinator Center Director
- Regional Coordinating Center Supervisors
- Director of Capacity-Building
- Capacity-Building Coordinators
As our name suggests, all of our work will be conducted in close collaboration with community-based partners. In all these positions, we are placing a high value on several qualities/kinds of experience:
- Lived and/or work experience with the WPC issues of focus (homelessness, substance use disorder, reentry, severe and persistent mental illness, chronic illness, high risk pregnancy)
- Familiarity with the underlying causes of health inequities and strategies to address health inequities using community organizing and community development
- Experience working with or for community based organizations (CBOs) and/or as a liaison between public agencies and CBOs
- Strong connections to WPC communities of focus
- Knowledge of and experience using popular education methodology for building individual and community capacity
- Knowledge of and experience using the Community Health Worker/promotor/a modelPlease carefully consider and refer possible candidates for these positions, and disseminate this email widely. An internal application and review process will be conducted in parallel to the County hiring process; successful candidates may be brought on either as contractors or as County staff.
LARRP Employment Committee Meeting schedule:
4th Thursday of Each Month
9:00 am to 11:00 am
Amity Foundation,
3745 S Grand Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90007
Contact us to attend the next meeting, and to join our email list.
Committee Goals
The goals of the Employment Work Group are to:
- Research evidence-based/best practices in the areas of vocational and soft-skills training, apprenticeships, and on-the-job training;
- Explore Community Benefit Agreements/labor agreements;
- Identify entrepreneurial opportunities to improve and increase employment readiness and job placement for formerly incarcerated or convicted people in LA County.
Employment Committee Mission
“To increase employment amongst the reentry population, resulting in greater stability, self-sufficiency, and an improved quality of life for the community at-large.”
Links
Ban The Box Fair Chance Initiative Resources
Employers with 26 or more employees:
07/01/2017 $12.00
07/01/2018 $13.25
07/01/2019 $14.25
07/01/2020 $15.00
Employers with 25 or fewer employees or Non-profit corporations with 26 or more employees with approval to pay a deferred rate:
07/01/2017 $10.50
07/01/2018 $12.00
07/01/2019 $13.25
07/01/2020 $14.25
07/01/2021 $15.00
Employee Remedies including, but are not limited to, the following:
• Payment of wages unlawfully withheld;
• Payment of Sick Time Benefits unlawfully withheld; and/or
• An additional penalty of up to $120 to the Employee and up to $50 to the City for each day that either violation occurred or continued.
• In cases of retaliation, the Employee may be entitled to reinstatement and trebled the above.
An aggrieved Employee may file a civil court action.
Brookings has come out with a new report on occupational licensing.
Here’s a summary:
Occupational licensing - the legal requirement that a credential is obtained in order to practice a profession—is a common labor market regulation that ostensibly exists to protect public health and safety. However, by limiting access to many occupations, licensing imposes substantial costs: consumers pay higher prices, economic opportunity is reduced for unlicensed workers, and even those who successfully obtain licenses must pay upfront costs and face limited geographic mobility. In addition, licensing often prescribes and constrains the ways in which work is structured, limiting innovation and economic growth.
Researchers have studied these licensing impacts, and much of their analysis is well-summarized in a 2015 report released by the Obama administration. One important finding is that licensed workers tend to earn more than similar workers who are not required to obtain licenses: they receive a wage premium relative to unlicensed workers.
Success Stories
Employment changes lives. Success is possible. We would like to share some of those success stories with you.
Ricky’s Story
Prior to accessing services in the community, Ricky lived life in the fast lane. He faced huge barriers in his job search; limited work experience, a felony conviction, and a large employment gap. He felt lost, and did not know how to explain these barriers to an employer. Despite his barriers, Ricky was determined to succeed.
Click here to read Ricky’s story.
Ernie’s Story
“I grew up in Southeast Los Angeles where three generations of my family lived and began using drugs and alcohol at age seven. My father was a heroin supplier to the East Los Angeles area, and was either in prison or just never home.
Click here to read Ernie’s story
Ron’s Story
I left home when I was 17; I had been abused by my stepfather and had been using drugs for about 4 years. I ended up in Hollywood about a year later with no money and no place to live in 1977. I met many people involved with drugs and began using them myself. I spent the years between 1985 and 1999 going in and out of prison, being homeless and addicted to drugs.
Click here to read Ron’s story