There are two Clevelands, says Jill Rizika, executive director of Towards Employment. One Cleveland consists of gleaming new condominiums and office towers, she says; the other is comprised of impoverished neighborhoods still struggling outside the city’s much-ballyhooed renaissance.
Towards Employment aspires to bridge this gap via job training and placement as well as removal of employment barriers for people previously involved in the criminal justice system. Last year, the nonprofit placed 475 Greater Cleveland residents in full-time jobs and served another 1,500 participants through training, career coaching and other programs.
Those assisted by the organization are unemployed or underemployed, and they come from a variety of difficult circumstances, says Rizika. About half have criminal records, while others have dealt with drug problems or company downsizing. Participants are rigorously screened then placed with one of 300 corporate associates offering entry-level to middle-skill positions in health care, manufacturing, construction, nutrition services and additional industries.
Employment retention and career development are organizational end-goals, Rizika says. Across all programs, new workers have an average retention rate of 65 percent after 180 days. At the high end is University Hospitals, where 80 percent of employees stay on over the same time period.
Not surprisingly, jobs with an upward career path are better able to keep workers, Rizika notes. To that end, Towards Employment provides newly minted employees with career coaches to guide them down the living-wage pathway.
“A job at $9 or $10 an hour isn't going to be family-sustaining,” says Rizika. “We’re focused on advancement.”
Before core program attendees are placed, they must undergo two to four weeks of training at the group’s downtown Cleveland headquarters. Participants are taught interviewing and resume-writing skills, along with “soft skills” such as conflict resolution and communicating with coworkers. Credentialed, industry-specific skill-building, meanwhile, takes place through partner programs such as Cuyahoga Community College’s welding boot camp.
Building a career pathway framework includes removing employment obstacles, Rizika says. Staff members, among them a pair of attorneys, aid would-be wage earners with driver’s license recovery, credit debt and any number of legal issues.
A vetted program graduate is a more-than-viable option for a company that needs qualified hires, says director of business services Chelsea Mills.
“They can pull people off the street, or get workers who have been screened by us,” says Mills. “Companies know our people have been vetted and will continue to receive support.”
Ultimately, it’s about giving Cleveland’s underserved population an opportunity, say program officials. That person could be a 20-year-old who has aged out of foster care, or a 50-year-old ex-con seeking a second chance.
“We're helping people be successful and forward-looking,” says Rizika. “We want them to have a focus on lifelong learning.”