Community Services Agency: Washington Area Women in the Trades (WAWIT): Building Pathways for Women and Work in the District of Columbia
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A partnership between the YWCA of the National Capital Area, the
Community Services Agency of the Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO (CSA),
and Wider Opportunities for Women (WOW). The program works to prepare women
to work in the trades in the DC Metro region, to have access to jobs that will
help them and their families achieve greater economic security, and to meet the
demands of the regional workforce.
The Program:
We have developed a strategy to help
women acquire the skills they need to pursue careers in the trades, and to
connect them to apprenticeship and career opportunities after they graduate from
the program. The program will reach out to women from different
communities and include some who face barriers that have prevented them from
finding or keeping well-paying jobs in the past.
Outreach and recruitment: All three partners will
engage in outreach and recruitment activities with workforce development
agencies, public benefits offices, and community and faith-based organizations
to encourage eligible women to participate in the program.
Basic skills curriculum: The YWCA will be responsible for
developing and implementing a curriculum that incorporates elements of earlier
curricula developed by the YWCA and WOW. The curriculum will provide students
with an array of soft skills necessary to be successful in the construction and
building trades, including math and reading skills, fitness, life skills, and an
introduction to the trades. The basic skills component will be taught at
the YWCA headquarters in downtown Washington.
Advanced training and information pipeline: The Community
Services Agency of the AFL-CIO will facilitate the training by local unions.
This training will provide students with hard skills. The training will take
place two to three days per week throughout most of the program weeks and will
include hands-on experience, guest speakers, and field trips to work
sites. An information pipeline will be created with these and other unions
to create opportunities with apprenticeship programs and employers that will be
available to participants on an ongoing basis both after completing the program
and in the future. The two-part training curriculum will be 12 weeks in
length.
Case management: WOW will implement a comprehensive case
management component which will provide necessary supports to trainees both
while they are enrolled and after they leave the program. Case managers will
also work with employers to better understand their job requirements and needs,
serving as an intermediary between the employee and the employer as necessary.
The case manager will help connect participants with services such as child
care, transportation, substance abuse programs, domestic violence supports, and
will follow-up with participants for up to 18 months after they graduate
to ensure a smooth transition into the workforce and to help with job
retention.
For Local Union Training
We are looking for locals
who can take up to 30 women from the program for 2-5 days to provide exposure to
your trade, some hands-on experience with tools and materials, safety
information and whatever you think would benefit these individuals. Instructors,
materials and lunch can be paid to the local from grant funds of WAWIT.
WAWIT second cycle participants learning cement masonry
skills at an Operative Plasterers and Cement Masons Local 891
apprenticeship training, photos by Andy Richards