Item 24 - Regional and Unified Local Workforce Plan for PY 2021-24

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In partnership with LAOCRC, the RPU will expand sector partnerships by working with Orange County chambers of commerce and other community and educational partners to identify additional core team members who will support strengthening industry sector partnerships. Orange County has many state, county, and local civic organizations, four community college school districts, twenty-seven K-12 school districts, California State University and University of California systems, and numerous other public and private stakeholders with a vested interest in workforce and economic development. Such a large number of stakeholders requires a great deal of commitment from the core group to build deep, sustainable relationships resulting in career pathways and a steady pipeline of workers within our identified priority sectors. This core team will be responsible for developing and carrying out an action plan that provides a strategic and coordinated effort to unify business engagement efforts, identify and engage industry champions, other businesses, and support partner organizations. The core team will relaunch sector meetings in the four sectors to gather information about the challenges and opportunities. After the initial meetings, employers will be invited to regular meetings to set goals to address their needs and take actions with the partners on those goals. Meetings and agendas will be employer-driven, and actions taken will create a pipeline of qualified candidates who meet industry needs for in-demand occupations. Although the RPU has started using the Next Gen model, fidelity is not as important as determining the appropriate strategies tailored to the Orange County regional economy, industry sectors, and worker populations. The RPU will schedule industry sector group meetings, and the groups will begin to identify strategies, design appropriate programs and services, and then move into the implementation of sector projects. Implementation will likely include a mix of basic strategies that include: • Training and skills development to bring new employees into specific industries and occupations • Business development • Incumbent worker training • Labor market and industry research • Restructuring of work environments to improve recruitment, hiring, training, compensation, and retention strategies • Integrating two or more of these strategies in a multifaceted approach 2C. ENABLING UPWARD MOBILITY FOR ALL CALIFORNIANS 2Ci. Describe how the RPU will prioritize working with employers who provide quality jobs that provide economic security through family-sustaining wages and comprehensive benefits. This should include whether the RPU has, or plans to develop, a formal policy related to job quality. The Orange RPU is committed to identifying strategies that improve the workforce system, ensuring that it enables economic growth and shared prosperity for employers and employees. The California Workforce Development Board defines quality jobs as employment that provide EXHIBIT 1