To: Sonoma County Board of Supervisors
Department or Agency Name(s): Human Services
Staff Name and Phone Number: Shaydra Ennis (707) 565-8086; Katie Greaves (707) 565-8501
Vote Requirement: Majority
Supervisorial District(s): Countywide
Title:
Title
Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Local Strategic Workforce Plan
End
Recommended Action:
Recommended action
Approve the 2021-2024 WIOA Local Strategic Workforce Plan for Sonoma County.
end
Executive Summary:
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act was signed into law on July 22, 2014, which replaced the Workforce Investment Act of 1998. WIOA regulations require that Workforce Investment Boards (WIBs) in the North Bay Regional Planning Unit (Sonoma, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Napa and Solano counties) work together to develop a regional workforce plan and also to develop local workforce plans. The local plan for Sonoma County must be approved by the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors or their designated alternate (the Director of Sonoma County Human Services) for submission to the California Workforce Development Board by April 30, 2021.
The plan focuses on services for job seekers and businesses in Sonoma County and, specifically, how the Workforce Investment Board, Sonoma County Job Link and local partners can strengthen workforce supports for our community as we emerge from the public health crisis. COVID-19 has greatly impacted how the workforce development system delivers services and the Local Plan provides strategies to further collaborate, innovate and strengthen partnerships towards transition back to a healthy economy.
Discussion:
The overarching purpose of WIOA is to improve the local workforce system and the Sonoma County Workforce Investment Board (WIB) is the mechanism by which this effort is accomplished. The Sonoma County Human Services Department provides administrative support to the WIB. To this end, the WIB works throughout the community to align employment and training programs and services with education and business. The WIB provides oversight to Sonoma County Job Link, the local America’s Job Center of California (AJCC), which assists local job seekers with accessing employment, education, training, and support services so that they can obtain high-quality jobs with career pathways. Job Link also provides an array of services to employers including layoff aversion and mitigation, paid earn-and-learn training, job fairs, and matching employers with skilled job seekers in support of our local economy.
WIOA requires each state to develop a single, unified plan for creating a comprehensive, strategic, and streamlined workforce system. In 2020, the California Workforce Development Board created the WIOA plan for California. The state plan required each established region and each local area to develop a Regional and Local Plan that align with and support the State Plan. The North Bay Region includes Sonoma, Lake, Mendocino, Marin, Napa and Solano counties. The North Bay Regional Workforce Plan is available on the Sonoma County WIB website (NBEC-Regional-Plan-3.9.21-for-Public-Comment.pdf (sonomawib.org) <https://sonomawib.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/NBEC-Regional-Plan-3.9.21-for-Public-Comment.pdf>).
In the Sonoma County 2021-2024 Local Workforce Plan, the WIB has developed strategic activities to support the principles defined by WIOA and California's State Workforce Development Board (CWDB). These principles include:
- Supporting a High Road Workforce System that includes job quality, worker voice, equity and environmental sustainability.
- Fostering “demand-driven skills attainment” by aligning program content between workforce and education with local industry needs to provide Sonoma County employers and businesses with a skilled workforce.
- Enabling upward mobility for all Sonoma County residents, including members of the “hardest to serve” populations with barriers to employment. Making workforce and education programs accessible ensures that Sonoma County residents have marketable skills and a level of education that will lead to economic security.
- Aligning, coordinating, and integrating programs and services to use resources to achieve scale and impact while providing the needed services to clients based on their needs.
Sonoma County 2021-2024 Local Workforce Plan Goals:
1. Focus on the Needs of Business: In alignment with the North Bay Regional Plan and in coordination across the North Bay Region, actively engage industries that provide good jobs with career pathways in in-demand priority sectors.
2. Spearhead System Alignment, Integration and Coordination: Lead efforts to align and integrate all WIOA partners within the America’s Job System of California (AJCC) system to allow for a robust menu of services for shared customers delivered in a true one-stop model.
3. Expand Earn & Learn: Lead strategic partnerships with industry, education and the core WIOA partners to expand opportunities for individuals to earn wages while they learn on the job, thus enhancing their ability to secure unsubsidized jobs that pay competitive, sustainable wages.
4. Focus on WIOA Priority Populations: Increase the number of those in identified priority populations, such as Veterans, justice-involved, low-income, English learners, people with disabilities, unhoused, foster youth and others who obtain marketable and industry-recognized skills and credentials to support their middle-income employment goals.
5. Increase and improve services to those with Limited English Proficiency: In alignment with the North Bay Regional Plan and in coordination with partners across the North Bay region, better align WIOA Title I with WIOA Title II Adult Education and Literacy programs to serve the County’s Limited English-Proficient community.
6. Focus on Equity: Create System Inclusivity & Accessibility: Expand access to WIOA programs and services for individuals who have historically been excluded from economic and social prosperity.
7. Continuous System Improvement and High-Performance Board Standard: Establish high performance standards that ensure premium workforce services to job seekers, workers and businesses that exceed state-required performance.
The local plan was developed with partners and stakeholders including industry leaders and business organizations, economic development agencies including the Economic Development Board, local schools and colleges including Career Technical Education, adult education providers, Department of Rehabilitation, Sonoma County Human Services Department, local community-based organizations, groups with experience representing and serving individuals with barriers to employment, and the community as a whole. Several stakeholder input sessions were held between March 9 - March 17, 2021. The WIB used multiple processes to elicit participation in planning efforts and the public comment process. Input was solicited at:
1. Two Local Stakeholder Engagement feedback sessions targeted to agencies serving individuals with barriers to employment
2. March 13, 2021 WIB meeting
3. March 11, 2021 meeting of the Job Link Steering Committee
4. March 17,2021 meeting of the multi-agency English Language Learner (ELL) Workgroup
5. March 2021 survey of Sonoma County employers conducted by Economic Development Board and Workforce Investment Board
The Draft Local Plan was posted to the WIB website (www.sonomawib.org <http://www.sonomawib.org>) on March 24, 2021, and notifications were sent to regional Workforce Development Boards, workforce partners, education, labor, business, community-based organizations and other stakeholders. Stakeholders were also encouraged to submit written input if unable to attend.
In addition, the plan was posted for a 30-day comment period from March 24 - April 25, 2021. The local plan includes the input received at input sessions and during the comment period. As required by WIOA, the WIB must submit the local plan, approved by the Board of Supervisors or their designated alternate by April 30, 2021. Through an agreement with the Board of Supervisors and the WIB, the Human Services Director has been granted authority to sign documents on behalf of the Board of Supervisors. Once signed, the local plan will be sent to the California Workforce Development Board for review and final approval.
Prior Board Actions:
May 14, 2019: Approved the Sonoma County WIOA 2017-2020 Regional and Local Workforce Plan Two Year Update.
March 17, 2017: Approved the Sonoma County Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Local Strategic Workforce Plan for Program Years 2017-2020.
March 17, 2015: Received a report on the WIOA of 2014 and signed the application for Sonoma County’s designation as a Local Workforce Development area.
July 30, 2013: Approved the WIA Local Strategic Workforce Plan for Program Years 2013-2017.
Fiscal Summary
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Narrative Explanation of Fiscal Impacts:
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Narrative Explanation of Staffing Impacts (If Required):
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Attachments:
2021 - 2024 Local WIOA Strategic Workforce Plan for Sonoma County
Related Items “On File” with the Clerk of the Board:
None