The Seattle-King Workforce Funders Collaborative is led locally by JP Morgan Chase Foundation and Boeing. Funders including Microsoft, Ballmer Group, and the Seattle Foundation meet regularly to plan and advocate for strengthened workforce and educational systems, promote inclusive community development, and ensure that philanthropic resources and public resources are coordinated. The collaborative’s goal is to see low-wage workers develop skills, obtain industry-supported credentials, and advance in careers paying family-sustaining wages.
The Funders Collaborative is hosted by the Workforce Development Council of Seattle-King County (WDC), a nonprofit, grant-making organization dedicated to creating career pathways for adults and youth through demand-driven workforce and training programs. The WDC forges relationships across industries and sectors in order to contribute to an inclusive and dynamic regional economy in which all residents and their families thrive in careers defined by growth and self-sufficiency. The WDC’s mission is to champion a workforce and learning system that allows the region to be a world leader in producing a vibrant economy and lifelong employment and training opportunities for every resident.
6.2.5
Sector Focus
Industry Partnerships
Healthcare
Launched in May, 2018, the Healthcare Industry Leadership Table brings together over 40 healthcare leaders from two dozen diverse organizations across the region. Leaders focus on the changing landscape of the healthcare workforce in the region, mapping out a set of the most critical shared priorities. The table uses the Next Gen Sector Partnerships model, which places business leaders and business champions at the center, with community partners playing a supportive role. Since the table was established, business leaders have discovered shared priorities for creating new talent pipeline entry-points, identifying and developing both new and incumbent talent, addressing regional housing affordability, and coordinating along the continuum of care.
Retail
Led by Port Jobs, Seattle’s retail industry partnership began in 2019. Partners, including Starbucks and other local retailers, come together to learn, share information and resources, and plan for the future of retail. Goals of the partnership include classes for incumbent works that focus on advancement, and opening a location similar to Port Jobs’ recognized Airport Jobs center at SeaTac airport. By helping incumbent workers, jobseekers, and employers, the partnership seeks to strengthen the retail industry locally and share best practices nationally.
6.2.5