Oxnard will hold its special city council recall election today, May 1. Business leaders are strongly encouraged to participate by voting and urging employees, colleagues and family members to do the same. The recall election will likely see a very light voter turnout (maybe 10%). For voters not familiar with the special election, Oxnard City Clerk Michelle Ascencion has published an informational video to explain the purpose and process. The Oxnard 2020 coalition of business, labor and public safety has launched a "complete the ballot" campaign. The Oxnard Chamber is a member of that coalition.
In addition, the Oxnard Chamber has endorsed Miguel Lopez for mayor. "The Oxnard Chamber of Commerce opposed the city council recall election when petitions were being circulated among voters. However, the recall is here. If the current mayor is recalled, we believe the best candidate to succeed him is Miguel Lopez. Miguel is an open-minded champion for Oxnard and would assume office without any preconceived agendas," said Oxnard Chamber CEO Nancy Lindholm. The Oxnard Chamber of Commerce, along with many of Oxnard's businesses and residents, looks forward to the recall election completion and hopes the city can get back to normal business. The California Chamber of Commerce has released its list of job creator bills, calling attention to 11 bills that will stimulate the economy and improve the state’s jobs climate.
Since 2008, the CalChamber has identified bills that will encourage employers to invest resources back into the economy and local communities rather than spend them on unnecessary government-imposed costs. Job creating legislation promotes the following policies:
The 2018 job creator bill list follows: AB 1734 (Calderon; D-Whittier) Extension of Film Tax Credits -- Extends California’s current tax credit for motion picture and television productions, which has a sunset date of July 1, 2020, for an additional five years, continuing the success of this tax credit, which has brought more film and television production jobs to this state and has increased business to California. AB 1743 (O’Donnell; D-Long Beach) Career Technical Education -- Reauthorizes and provides appropriations for the Career Technical Education Incentive Grant program, which provides students with necessary training and education to prepare them for a variety of career options. AB 2016 (Fong; R-Bakersfield) Private Attorneys General Act — Mitigates the financial threat of frivolous litigation by requiring that plaintiffs provide a more detailed account of the allegations in the required Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) notice, allowing an employer to utilize these financial resources to grow their workforce instead. AB 2482 (Voepel; R-Santee) Flexible Workweek — Allows for an employee-selected flexible work schedule and relieves employers of the administrative cost and burden of adopting an alternative workweek schedule per division, which accommodates employees, helps retain employees, and allows the employer to invest these savings into growing its workforce. AB 2509 (Waldron; R-Escondido) Employee Flexibility -- Provides non-exempt employees, who work a traditional 8-hour day schedule, the opportunity to request an on-duty meal period in order to leave work 30 minutes earlier, which helps accommodate employee requests, retain employees, and offer more flexible work arrangements. AB 2770 (Irwin; D-Thousand Oaks) Sexual Harassment Employer/Employee Protection -- Codifies case law to ensure victims of sexual harassment and employers are not sued for defamation by the alleged harasser when a complaint of sexual harassment is made and the employer conducts its internal investigation. This bill also provides additional protections to employers by expressly allowing employers to inform potential employers about the sexual harassment investigation and findings. Reducing the cost of frivolous litigation allows an employer to utilize these financial resources to grow its workforce. AB 2907 (Flora; R-Ripon) Private Attorneys General Act -- Provides employers with a reasonable opportunity to cure specific Labor Code violations before being subject to costly and frivolous litigation under the Labor Code Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA), allowing an employer to invest this financial savings into growing its workforce. AB 2936 (Nazarian; D-Sherman Oaks) Extension of Film Tax Credits -- Extends California’s current tax credit for motion picture and television productions, which has a sunset date of July 1, 2020, for an additional five years, continuing the success of this tax credit, which has brought more film and television production jobs to this state and has increased business to California companies that supply productions with goods and services. SB 832 (Portantino;D-La Cañada Flintridge) Extension of Film Tax Credits -- Extends California’s current tax credit for motion picture and television productions, which has a sunset date of July 1, 2020, for an additional five years, continuing the success of this tax credit, which has brought more film and television production jobs to this state and has increased business to California companies that supply productions with goods and services. SB 951 (Mitchell; D-Los Angeles) Extension of Film Tax Credits -- Extends California’s current tax credit for motion picture and television productions, which has a sunset date of July 1, 2020, for an additional five years, continuing the success of this tax credit, which has brought more film and television production jobs to this state and has increased business to California companies that supply productions with goods and services. SB 1243(Portantino; D-La Cañada Flintridge) Career Training Education — Establishes the California State Pathways in Technology (CA P-TECH) program, to encourage and assist selected schools, in a public-private partnership, to prepare students for high-skilled, high demand jobs in technology, manufacturing, health care and finance. For more information on the 2018 job creator bills, visit www.calchamber.com/jobcreators. Christy Madden is a Sr. Deputy Executive Officer for Community Development Division in County Executive Office, administering HUD Entitlement grants and Countywide Continuum of Care funding for homeless programs and services. She actively participates in several County initiatives including Pay for Success, promoting outcomes-based contracting, innovative financing, data integration, and pursuing system improvements to enhance service delivery by strengthening community, non-profit, and local government partnerships. Specific emphasis is placed on high frequency users of publicly funded systems of care, particularly for persons who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. Find out what collaboration is taking place on addressing the increasing challenge of homelessness in Ventura County. Ms. Madden will offer her perspective and insight. Please join us on May 10 at the Knowledge & Networking Lunch at River Ridge Golf Club, 2401 W. Vineyard Avenue. Check-in and networking begin at 11:30. Lunch is at noon with the program to follow. Program introduction by Ventura County Supervisor John Zaragoza. Advance reservations are required and are discounted for Chamber members if made by May 7. Despite employer objections, the Senate Labor and Industrial Relations Committee this week passed two California Chamber of Commerce-opposed job killer bills. One deals with releasing company pay data and the other with unlawful employment practices.
Both bills are opposed by a large coalition of employer groups and local chambers of commerce. • SB 1284 (Jackson; D-Santa Barbara) Disclosure of Company Pay Data. • SB 1300 (Jackson; D-Santa Barbara) Removes Legal Standing and Prohibits Release of Claims. SB 1284: Pay Data Report SB 1284 requires that in 2019, an employer that is incorporated in California with 100 or more employees must submit a pay data report to the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR). CalChamber has identified SB 1284 as a job killer because the bill creates a false impression of wage discrimination or unequal pay where none exists and therefore subjects employers to unfair public criticism, enforcement measures, and significant litigation costs to defend against meritless claims. Just last year, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. vetoed AB 1209 (Gonzalez Fletcher; D-San Diego), which was a very similar bill. SB 1284 provides the same uncertainty and ambiguity as AB 1209. The CalChamber and coalition also oppose SB 1284 because it: • Exposes employers to public shaming for wage disparities that are not unlawful. • Allows employers to use the federal Employer Information Report, otherwise known as the EEO-1 Report. • Utilizes data that may be affected by employee choices. CalChamber Policy Advocate Laura Curtis explains to the Senate Labor and Industrial Relations Committee why SB 1284 (Jackson; D-Santa Barbara) is a job killer. SB 1300: Legal Standing/Release of Claims SB 1300 removes the current legal standing requirement for specific Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) claims and limits the use of nondisparagement agreements and general releases. CalChamber has identified SB 1300 as a job killer because these provisions will significantly increase litigation against California employers and limit their ability to invest in their workforce. The CalChamber and coalition also oppose SB 1300 because it: • Removes the current standing requirement and allows anyone to sue a company for specific harassment claims. • Is unnecessary and exposes employers to costly litigation. Sexual harassment prevention is already regulated by the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH). • Will deter employers from conducting self-audits and providing severance agreements. • Will chill the use of settlement agreements, disadvantaging employers and employees. Key Vote Both SB 1284 and SB 1300 passed Senate Labor and Industrial Relations on April 11 by votes of 4-1: Ayes: Pan (D-Sacramento), Jackson (D-Santa Barbara), Mitchell (D-Los Angeles), Wieckowski (D-Fremont). No: J. Stone (R-Temecula). Action Needed Both SB 1284 and SB 1300 will be considered next by the Senate Judiciary Committee. The CalChamber is urging members to contact their senator and members of the committee and ask them to oppose SB 1284 and SB 1300 as job killers. Reel Guppy Outdoors founder, Kevin Brannon saw a need for a free youth fishing program in his local community. Many kids would tell him they wished they had someone to take them fishing too, whenever he and his kids would pile into the car, fishing rods and tackle in tow. He himself had grown up with uncertainty, single parent household, low income, after his father passed away. Then it was foster homes and shelters, a modern-day Dickensian childhood. With little other opportunity, yet living just a block from Port Hueneme Pier, he would spend hours there, fishing. Required to be ever resourceful, he would recover used fishing line and hooks. With a tin can as his fishing pole, and any leftover bait he could scrounge from the pier’s cleaning tables, he was a modern-day Huck Fin. By age 9, he had worked his way aboard the local party-boats. As a “pin-head,” he helped paying passengers with their fishing, untangling lines, sacking fish and such. Out on the boats was a haven of safety and solitude, a place of security and certainty in his otherwise unstable childhood. This time imprinted a passion for fishing and the sea, an ethic valuing helping others. He carries these values to this day, and they form the heart and soul of the Reel Guppy Outdoors program. Now, some 25 years later, Brannon produces a TV show he started while attending Oxnard College. Reel Anglers Fishing Show California currently televised in California produces the Reel Guppy Outdoor. Brannon saw it as his purpose, sharing his connection with the ocean and outdoors with others, to foster in others the sense of belonging and purpose he found in fishing. With the promise of fun and adventure as bait, he fosters a sense of value in learning, self motivation, leadership and success in the young people he takes fishing. As a survivor of uncertain times, he wants to pass on the survival strategies that saved him. Brannon reinvested the blessings and rewards from his successful show toward taking as many kids as he could fit in his car, fishing. The effort blossomed. With the help of other like-minded folk, also volunteering their time and effort, he has organized over 20 youth fishing events, taking over 1,000 kids fishing. For more information visit their website - www.reelguppyoutdoors.com | 805-248-2166 Check their website for 4th weekend events as locations will vary. A delegation of business leaders will be headed to Sacramento May 22-24 to voice concerns over pending legislation deemed harmful to the economy and the ability for business to prosper and create jobs. The Capitol visit will be in conjunction with the members of the Chambers of Commerce Alliance of Ventura & Santa Barbara Counties. The Alliance's Sacramento-based lobbyist will coordinate a series of meetings with our legislators and their staff, as well as key committee chairs. In addition to the meetings in the Capitol, the California Chamber of Commerce will be delivering a legislative briefing and hosting keynote speakers. CalChamber President and CEO Allan Zaremberg will also render remarks. On Thursday morning the Governor will address the business group, as has been the tradition for more than 100 years. This will be Governor Brown's final appearance at this annual event. Oxnard Chamber members are invited to join the delegation. Our schedule will be:
The Oxnard Chamber's voice in Sacramento is critical to make sure our elected officials understand the impact of their votes on local businesses. Launches Capitol Insider Blog
The California Chamber of Commerce yesterday released its annual list of job killer bills and launched its new Capitol Insider Blog, which, in this first installment, provides details about the list and the 21 bills that have been identified as those that pose the greatest threat to California’s job climate and economy. Sign up to follow the Capitol Insider blog at http://capitolinsider.calchamber.com/ In releasing the job killer list, CalChamber President and CEO Allan Zaremberg said, “Each bill on this year’s job killer list poses a threat to certainty for employers and investors in our state. Besides undermining the state’s economic health, job killer bills have a cumulative negative impact on the businesses and entrepreneurs who provide the resources necessary to fund critical state programs like health care and education. Legislators must measure the impact that each of these proposed new laws will have, not just when the economy is expanding but also when California experiences the inevitable downturn.” The 2018 list of job killer bills follows: AB 1745 (Ting; D-San Francisco) Vehicle Ban — Bans the sale of combustion engine vehicles in the state by prohibiting the registration of a new vehicle in the state after 2040 unless it is a zero-emission vehicle. AB 1761 (Muratsuchi; D-Torrance) Customer Blacklist and Hotel Workers Panic Button — Denies hotel guests due process, by requiring hotels to create a blacklist of guests who have been accused, yet not proven, to have engaged in inappropriate behavior toward hotel employees, and precludes the hotel from allowing those guests on the blacklist to enter their properties for three years. AB 1902 (Levine; D-San Rafael) Interference with Contracts — Discourages and reduces “personal service contracts” as defined, by unfairly increasing the contract price for these services based upon an undefined and unspecified “area income” rate that presumably will include wages from different industries and different occupations that are not comparable to personal services. It also provides the Department of Industrial Relations with extraordinary authority to value companies, determine “similar services” to be included under the provisions of this bill, and what constitutes “area income.” AB 2069 (Bonta; D-Oakland) Medical Marijuana in Employment — Undermines employer’s ability to provide a safe and drug-free workplace by creating a new protected classification of employees who use marijuana for medical purposes, and exposing employers to costly and unnecessary litigation under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) whenever the employer terminates an employee in this new protected class who has created a safety hazard in the workplace. AB 2351 (Eggman; D-Stockton) Targeted Tax on High Earners -- Unfairly increases the personal income tax rate from 13.3% – which is already, by far, the highest income tax rate in the country – to 14.3% for one category of taxpayers (including some proprietors), who already pay half of California’s income taxes, forcing them to mitigate these costs through means that include reducing workforce, in order to provide more funding for higher education. AB 2527 (Muratsuchi; D-Torrance) Costly Litigation Against Small Employers — Exposes small businesses who are seeking financial investors in their company to devastating class action litigation by banning the use of arbitration agreements, which is preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act, prohibiting class action waivers, allowing for the award of treble damages, punitive damages, and attorney’s fees, and interferes with contractual negotiations between sophisticated parties by dictating the choice of forum and choice of law for such litigation. AB 2571 (Gonzalez Fletcher; D-San Diego) Public Employee Retirement Systems Investment Policy — Seeks to publicly shame investment managers and the hospitality companies in which they invest, by forcing them to submit an annual report subject to a public review, that discloses employee wage information according to gender, ethnicity, and race, exposing such companies to costly litigation. AB 2765 (Low; D-Campbell) Portable Benefits for The Gig Economy — Imposes onerous and costly mandates on companies in the gig economy labeled as the “digital marketplace” by adding them under the provisions of the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), expanding the protected classifications under FEHA for contractors of the digital marketplace to include “familial status,” and creates further confusion and uncertainty regarding the use and classification of independent contractors. These new mandates will dramatically increase the amount of frivolous litigation under FEHA and the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) for the digital marketplace. AB 3080 (Gonzalez Fletcher; D-San Diego) Ban on Settlement Agreements and Arbitration Agreements — Significantly expands employment litigation and increases costs for employers and employees by banning settlement agreements for labor and employment claims as well as arbitration agreements made as a condition of employment, which is likely preempted under the Federal Arbitration Act and will only delay the resolution of claims. Banning such agreements benefits the trial attorneys, not the employer or employee. ACA 22 (McCarty; D-Sacramento) Middle Class Fiscal Relief Act — Unnecessarily increases California’s 8.84% corporate tax rate, already one of the highest in the nation, to 18.84%, which will encourage companies to leave the state and discourage companies from expanding or relocating here. SB 1284 (Jackson; D-Santa Barbara) Disclosure of Company Pay Data — Unfairly requires California employers to submit pay data to the Department of Industrial Relations, creating a false impression of wage discrimination or unequal pay where none exists and, therefore, subjecting employers to unfair public criticism, enforcement measures, and significant litigation costs to defend against meritless claims. SB 1300 (Jackson; D-Santa Barbara) Removes Legal Standing and Prohibits Release of Claims — Significantly increases litigation by removing standing requirement for plaintiff alleging failure to prevent harassment or discrimination when no harassment even occurs, limits the use of severance agreements, and prohibits the use of a general release or nondisparagement clause in employer/employee contracts. SB 1398 (Skinner; D-Berkeley) Increased Tax Rate — Threatens to significantly increase the corporate tax rate on publicly held corporations and financial institutions up to 15% according to the wages paid to employees in the United States, and threatens to increase that rate by 50% thereafter, if the corporation or institution reduces its workforce in the United States and simultaneously increases its contractors. 2017 JOB KILLER CARRY-OVER BILLS AB 127 (Committee on Budget) Threatens Energy Reliability — Threatens energy reliability and will lead to the elimination of jobs by mandating the closure of the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage facility. ACA 4 (Aguiar-Curry; D-Winters) Lowers Vote Requirement for New Tax Increases — Unnecessarily reduces the voter threshold from two-thirds to 55% for local governments to enact special taxes, including parcel taxes, for the purpose of improving public infrastructure and affordable housing, which creates an opportunity for discriminatory and higher taxes to be imposed against disfavored industries and commercial property owners. ACA 11 (Caballero; D-Salinas) Targeted Retail Industry Tax Increase — Exposes the retail industry to increased taxes by imposing a quarter-cent sales tax increase to fund affordable housing and homeless shelters, without creating greatly needed market-rate housing. SB 49 (de León; D-Los Angeles) Creates Uncertainty and Increases Potential Litigation Regarding Environmental Standards — Creates uncertainty by giving broad and sweeping discretion to State agencies to adopt rules and regulations more stringent than the federal rules and regulations in effect on January 19, 2017 through an expedited administrative procedure without public participation or input, when the State agencies determine that federal action leads to less stringent laws and regulations than those in effect on January 19, 2017; and increases the potential for costly litigation by creating private rights of action under California law, which may be triggered when a State agency takes the foregoing discretionary action. SB 538 (Monning; D-Carmel) Arbitration Discrimination — Unfairly and unlawfully discriminates against arbitration agreements by restricting the formation of antitrust arbitration agreements in hospital contracts, leading to costly litigation over preemption by the Federal Arbitration Act. SB 562 (Lara; D-Bell Gardens) Government-Run Health Care — Penalizes responsible employers and individuals and results in significant new taxes on all Californians and California businesses by creating a new single-payer government-run, multibillion-dollar health care system financed by an unspecified and undeveloped “revenue plan.” SB 774 (Leyva; D-Chino) Increased Permitting Fees and Delayed Permitting — Exposes permittees to unknown, increased fees by providing the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) a blank check to impose additional fees on permittees to implement and perform its statutory requirements when its primary sources of funding have structural deficits and creates substantial uncertainty and delay of facility permitting by interjecting a new board into the organizational structure. SCA 6 (Wiener; D-San Francisco) Lowers Vote Requirement for Tax Increases — Unnecessarily reduces the voter threshold from two-thirds to 55% for local governments to enact special taxes, including parcel taxes, for the purpose of providing transportation services, which creates an opportunity for discriminatory and higher taxes to be imposed against disfavored industries and commercial property owners. Cumulative Job Killer Vetoes 2017: 27 job killers identified, 3 sent to Governor Brown, 2 signed, 1 vetoed. 2016: 24 job killers identified, 5 sent to Governor Brown, 4 signed, and 1 vetoed; 2015: 19 job killer bills identified, 3 sent to Governor Brown, 1 signed, and 2 vetoed; 2014: 27 job killer bills identified, 2 sent to Governor, signs 2; 2013: 38 job killer bills identified, 1 sent to Governor, signs 1; 2012: 32 job killer bills identified, 6 sent to Governor, signs 4, 2 vetoed; 2011: 30 job killer bills identified, 5 sent to Governor, 1 signed, 4 vetoed; 2010: 43 job killer bills identified, 12 sent to Governor, 2 signed, 10 vetoed; 2009: 33 job killer bills identified, 6 sent to Governor, 6 vetoed; 2008: 39 job killer bills identified, 10 sent to Governor, 1 signed, 9 vetoed; 2007: 30 job killer bills identified, 12 sent to Governor, 12 vetoed; 2006: 40 job killer bills identified, 11 sent to Governor, 2 signed, 9 vetoed; 2005: 45 job killer bills identified, 8 sent to Governor, 1 signed, 7 vetoed; 2004: 23 job killer bills identified, 10 sent to Governor, 10 vetoed; 2003: 53 job killer bills identified, 13 sent to Governor, 11 signed, 2 vetoed; 2002: 35 job killer bills identified, 17 sent to Governor, 12 signed, 5 vetoed 2001: 12 job killer bills identified, 5 sent to Governor, 3 signed, 2 vetoed; 2000: No job killers identified. Of 4 bad bills identified at end of session, Governor Davis signs 2 and vetoes 2. 1999: 30 job killer bills identified, 9 sent to Governor, 6 signed, 3 vetoed; 1998: 64 job killer bills identified, 11 sent to Governor, 11 vetoed. 1997: 57 job killer bills identified, 9 sent to Governor, 9 vetoed. The Selection Committee for the 2018 Community & Business Awards met on March 29 to sift through nominations submitted by Chamber and community members for a variety of award categories. The Selection Committee is made up of representatives of the sponsors of the Awards luncheon, which will take place on April 27 at Levity Live at The Collection. In addition to the nominations from the public, the Oxnard Chamber Board also selects a person, business, or organization to receive the Oxnard Trophy for bringing recognition to Oxnard and bettering the community. Here are the awardees: Distinguished Citizens of the Year – Sisters Servants of Mary Since 1961 the Sisters Servants of Mary have been ministering to the sick day and night. Woman of the Year – Marilyn Peake Marilyn is the Community Outreach Officer for Ventura County Credit Union (VCCU) where she leads VCCU's financial education efforts in the Hispanic and immigrant community. She is very involved in Oxnard as a volunteer, serving on the MICOP and SEEAG boards of directors. She also donates her time at the St. John's food pantry and for the Walk to End Alzheimer's. Man of the Year – Scott Whitney Chief Whitney has spent nearly 25 years with the Oxnard Police Department. In addition to serving as Chief, Scott stepped forward when Oxnard needed an interim city manager. Scott was born and raised in Oxnard and has dedicated his life to bettering the community. Large Business of the Year – California Resources Corporation California Resources Corporation has a strong dedication to the local communities where their employees live and work. CRC serves as an active and supportive community partner through impactful donations and volunteerism. Small Business of the Year – Coastal Architects Partners Michael Sanchez and Jeffrey Zook formed Coastal Architects ten years ago and have had quite an impact on Oxnard since then. They have been a transformative agent in Downtown revitalization and throughout the community. Downtown Business of the Year – Xielo Artisan Desserts The Ramirez family owns and operates their artisan Mexican café from the historical Woolworth building in Downtown Oxnard where they prepare and serve a unique variety of delicious foods using recipes passed down through generations of their family. Innovative Business of the Year – The Annex at The Collection at RiverPark New at The Collection in 2017, The Annex is a 16,000 square foot collection of microshops, artisan boutiques and epicurean discoveries showcasing unique local retailers, craft food and beverage purveyors. Service Organization of the Year – Soroptimist International of Oxnard In addition to everything Soroptimist of Oxnard does to enhance women's lives, they have added a new program called "Dream It, Be It: Career Support for Girls" which focuses on girls in secondary education programs who face obstacles to their future success. Oxnard Trophy – Oxnard Convention & Visitors Bureau The Oxnard Convention & Visitors Bureau works tirelessly to promote Oxnard to both domestic and international visitors. Their efforts are paying off since Oxnard currently has the highest hotel occupancy rate and the highest average daily hotel rate of all the cities in Ventura County. The 68th Annual Community & Business Awards luncheon will be April 27 at Levity Live at The Collection. Advance reservations are required. Call or click to sign up! The California economy is humming. Unemployment is at historic lows, even in many parts of the state often left behind in good times.
But even this silver lining has a cloud. Parts of the Bay Area and Southern California are beyond full employment, which means some California regions are creating more jobs than the labor force can support. Talent-Worker Mismatch As Robert Kleinhenz of Beacon Economics wrote, “with the state at full employment, job growth and general economic gains will largely be constrained by the availability of workers. This is good for workers who might achieve pay increases in the coming months and quarters, but it poses a challenge for firms that want to grow but cannot because they are unable to hire the necessary workers.” Nationally, half of open, available positions go unfilled because the candidates aren’t available. At the same time, 40% of businesses can’t take on more work because they can’t fill open jobs. We have an extraordinary mismatch between our talent needs and the pipeline of new or potential workers. The flip side is that many of our students face a different future. Only 40% of the state’s 2.2 million young adults hold an associate’s degree or higher and many lack the skills needed for workforce success. According to the Public Policy Institute of California, California needs an additional 1.1 million career-ready college graduates by 2030 to meet the needs of the economy. Unless trends are reversed, California’s stature as a vibrant, global economy is at risk. In other words, we’re all in this together. Linked Learning Fortunately, many public leaders and groups are working to address these needs. For my part, I want to share the promise of Linked Learning—which we believe can provide a long-term pipeline of well-qualified students, as well as enabling high school and college graduates to stay in California in jobs that pay well and provide for upward mobility. Linked Learning is based on the idea that students work harder and dream bigger if their education is relevant to them. The Linked Learning approach integrates four key elements to develop college- and career-ready graduates:
First, the probability of making a living wage in today’s economy without some form of postsecondary education is already low and will only diminish. Increasingly, career success depends on a postsecondary degree or credential. Second, without an explicit goal for preparing high school students for a full range of post-graduation opportunities, we risk reverting to tracking students whom an adult may think are incapable of college. A core component of the experience in any Linked Learning pathway is work-based learning, which allows students to apply their classroom learning in professional settings and gain real-world experience in the process. Students learn what it takes to thrive in the professional world through partnerships with local employers that offer internships, mentoring, job shadows and similar opportunities. This adds depth and meaning to students’ education, as classroom learning becomes more meaningful and relevant to students when paired with opportunities to experience the subject matter firsthand. Business Challenge Where do we in the business community fit in? Our challenge is to overcome a current lack of engagement by the California business community in providing workplace experiences for youth, despite a strong business case for the recruitment of young people. Talent pipeline strategies support long-term business productivity and competitiveness in an aging society. Investing in young people helps employers engage with their community and strengthen their brand. Growing your own workforce is also more cost-effective than buying the skills on the open market. Our response to the twin challenges of a talent pipeline deficit and high school graduates underprepared for career and college is to continue our momentum to engage chambers of commerce and other local economic development organizations to promote employer engagement in work-based learning. |