Workforce development

Building an Inclusive Economy: New York's Day Labor Centers and Workforce Development (2022)

• Author: Nik Theodore
• Day labor centers have come to play an important, though over-looked, role within local workforce development systems. Through programming targeted to underserved labor forces and industries, and by strengthening the floor under wages and working conditions, day labor centers substantially improve labor market outcomes for disadvantaged workers. This report examines the activities of the worker centers that are funded through the New York City Day Laborer Workforce Initiative (DLWI), an innovative city-funded program that supports some of the workforce development activities of these organizations.

“The Future of Work: Urban Economies in Transition,” in Pagano MA, ed., Jobs and the Labor Force of Tomorrow: Migration, Training, Education, 3-22. Champaign, IL: University of Illinois Press (2017).

• Chapter Authors: Beth Gutelius & Nik Theodore

The Illinois Medical District: Its Economic Impact and Workforce (2013)

• Report Authors: Elizabeth Scott & Howard Wial
• This report assesses the size of the IMD’s impact on the Chicago regional economy and describes the IMD’s productive activity, jobs, and workforce.

Multiplying Jobs: How Manufacturing Contributes to Employment Growth in Chicago and the Nation (2013)

• Report Authors: Elizabeth Scott & Howard Wial
• This briefing paper, the second in CUED’s Manufacturing Chicago’s Future series, focuses on the ways in which manufacturing jobs are linked to other jobs and shows the numbers of jobs that depend on manufacturing employment in the Chicago region and the nation as a whole.

Opportunity Chicago 2006-2010: Improving Access to Employment for Public Housing Residents in Chicago (2012)

• Authors: Rhae Parkes, Emily Holt, Kimary Lee, Nik Theodore, David Cook

The Promise and Challenge of Transitional Jobs: Opportunity Chicago's Transitional Jobs Programs (2012)

• Authors: Kimary Lee, Nik Theodore, Rhae Parkes, Emily Holt, Mirabai Auer

Finance & Insurance Career Pathways (2009)

• Report Authors: Greg Shrock & Judith Kossy
• This report examines career paths and skills crosswalks within the Finance and Insurance Sector (F&I Sector), comprised of the banking, insurance and securities industries. It provides information to assist employers expand their talent pool, individuals identify career opportunities in the sector, and education, training and workforce development organizations respond to the skill needs of employers and individuals.

Career Pathways & Crosswalks in the Hotel, Retail & Restaurant Industries (2007)

• Report Authors: Greg Shrock & Judith Kossy
• This report, completed for the Chicago Workforce Board with the support of the Joyce Foundation, examines career pathways and crosswalks in the hotel, restaurant and retail industries.

An Evaluation of Illinois’ JTED Program (2006)

• Report Authors: Greg Shrock & Davis Jenkins
• This report presents findings from an evaluation of Job Training and Economic Development (JTED), an innovative program unique to Illinois that fosters community-business partnerships for economic and workforce development. The study finds that JTED completers fare better in the labor market in earnings and employment.

The Hidden Public Cost of Low-Wage Work in Illinois (2006)

• Report Authors: Nik Theodore & Marc Doussard
• In this report, we measure the hidden public costs of low-wage work, and assess their implications for workers, employers, taxpayers and policy makers in Illinois.

The Hidden Public Cost of Low-Wage Work in Illinois: Data Sources and Calculations (2006)

• Report Authors: Nik Theodore & Marc Doussard

Persistent Unemployment in Illinois: The Case for Reauthorizing Federal Temporary Extended Unemployment Compensation Benefits (2003)

• Report Authors: Nik Theodore, Chirag Mehta, Andrew Stettner & Sharon Mastracci
• Two years of recovery have not helped employment figures, which remain disappointing. This report advocates for the reauthorization of federal temporary extended unemployment compensation benefits.

Social Security Administration’s No-Match Letter Program: Implications for Immigration Enforcement and Workers’ Rights (2003)

• Report Authors: Chirag Mehta, Nik Theodore & Marielena Hincapié
• Employer no-match letters inadvertently have become de facto immigration enforcement tools. This study assesses the wide-ranging impacts of SSA’s no-match letter program on local labor markets and immigration enforcement efforts

Measuring the Performance of Job Trainers Under WIA: Results of a Survey of Chicago Providers (2000)

• Report Authors: James Lewis & Nikolas Theodore
• This survey was conducted of Chicago job training providers to gather information about past performance to inform the design of new Workforce Investment Act performance standards and to help guide future data collection efforts. The survey provides information on some of the factors that lead to success in job placement, both in terms of placement rates and average wages at the time of placement.  This issue brief presents the results and key findings of the survey.

umboldt Park Employment Challenges and Opportunities (1998)

• Report Authors: William D. Howard
• This survey of 20 local employers in Chicago’s Humboldt Park neighborhood aimed to determine hiring patterns and gather information about their employment needs.

An Evaluation of the Paternal Involvement Demonstration (1996)

• Report Authors: William D. Howard, Janice Mathews-Rasheed & Joan Fitzgerald
• This report evaluates the Paternal Involvement Demonstration project, which aimed to demonstrate the value of providing job training, job placement and paternal involvement services to young non-custodial fathers whose children received support from Aid to Families with Dependent Children. It finds that PIDP has been largely successful in meeting its goals.