(Washington, DC) On Friday, September 8, at 11 am, Mayor Muriel Bowser will highlight the innovative workforce system reforms that led to vast improvements in the District as recognized by the United States Department of Labor. Since 2015, the Bowser Administration has served over 100,000 residents and businesses through the Department of Employment Services (DOES) by providing training, employment services, job fairs, and work-based learning programs. Following the announcement, Mayor Bowser will host Workforce Signing Day to highlight DOES program participants who have secured full-time, permanent employment in the public and private sector industries. Similar to College Signing Day, Mayor Bowser will recognize program participants from Apprenticeship DC, L.E.A.P. (Learn, Earn, Advance, Prosper), Project Empowerment, DC Career Connections, Back to Work 50+, Aspire to Entrepreneurship, American Job Center referrals and the Mayor Marion S. Barry Summer Youth Employment Program.
Since January 2015, the unemployment rate in Washington, DC has dropped by 1.1 percentage points, including decreases in all eight wards. Under the Bowser Administration, nearly 22,300 residents secured employment; 994 residents were employed through DOES workforce programs; 897 residents, who received training through DOES, gained employment; and a total of 24,853 youth participated in DOES programs in FY 2016 – FY 2017.
All week long, DC Works Week celebrates the impact of groundbreaking employers and community stakeholders in shaping the District’s workforce system. DC Works Week is a part of Mayor Bowser’s efforts to provide equal economic opportunities for all Washingtonians to have a fair shot at pathways to the middle class.
When:
Friday, September 8, at 11 am
Who:
Mayor Muriel Bowser
Courtney Snowden, Deputy Mayor, Greater Economic Opportunity
Odie Donald II, Director, DOES
Where:
Starbucks
1810 Wisconsin Avenue, NW, Roof
*Bus Lines: 30N, 30S, 31, 33*
Press interested in attending the event are asked to RSVP to [email protected]. To view the event online, visit mayor.dc.gov/live or tune in on Channel 16.