Construction Jobs for Local Residents (TRADES)

Although it represents some of the best paying jobs in our economy, the construction industry has yet to fully realize its potential as an avenue of economic mobility for low-income workers -- particularly women and people of color. But a promising new model for expanding access to construction jobs is beginning to emerge in cities across the United States. The logic of these initiatives is to build upon existing union apprenticeship programs, adding a coordinated system of pre-apprenticeship training, on-the-job mentoring, and other supports such as childcare. Structured as partnerships between community groups, public agencies and unions, and incorporating incentives for participation by high-road contractors, these programs hold real promise as a means of launching low-income workers into careers in the construction industry. As more of these campaigns are being organized across the country, important lessons are being learned. Our report, Winning Construction Jobs for Local Residents: A User's Guide for Community Organizing Campaigns, lays out a step-by-step strategy for creating and keeping high-quality construction jobs for local residents. It includes an analysis of the core stakeholders and potential allies in a construction jobs campaign, descriptions of model programs from across the country, and detailed explanations of legal tools necessary to get agreements in writing.

The TRADES Campaign in New York City: During the past several years, the Brennan Center has been supporting a New York City coalition that is promoting a community-based apprenticeship program for public housing residents. Known as TRADES, the coalition consists of public housing residents, progressive building trades unions and public policy groups, including the Brennan Center.

The goal of the coalition is to establish a program that:

  • Recruits public housing residents into the construction industry's apprenticeship system;
  • Places them in high-quality jobs working on New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) construction and renovation projects; and
  • Offers full support to the residents, from pre-apprenticeship training to on-the-job mentoring.

In the summer of 2003, TRADES secured a landmark commitment from NYCHA to purchase a significant amount of construction services over three years from high-road contractors affiliated with quality apprenticeship programs. In return, the participating unions agreed to reserve slots in their apprenticeship programs for residents of public housing. Representing a substantial portion of NYCHA's annual construction portfolio, this pilot program, once fully implemented, will be one of the nation's largest and most significant experiments with community-based apprenticeship.

The campaign is now working with NYCHA to implement the pilot program, on several fronts: awarding contracts for the construction work; creating a pre-apprenticeship training program; developing a network of community groups to recruit and support program participants; and designing a system for program monitoring.

For updates on the current status of the campaign, as well as more information on the TRADES coalition and its members, visit the campaign's website: http://www.nyjwj.org/trades.html.