Tacoma workforce roundtable highlights success stories to promote retraining, development
Government officials from the local, state and federal levels gathered Friday morning in Tacoma to highlight the work done in this area when it comes to workforce development.
U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh appeared at Friday’s roundtable at WorkSource Pierce with U.S. Sen. Patty Murray, Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards, County Executive Bruce Dammeier and U.S. Reps. Marilyn Strickland and Derek Kilmer, along with Katie Condit, CEO of Workforce Central, and other officials.
The roundtable served to spotlight local success stories among WorkSource Pierce participants.
Murray emphasized that “high-quality workforce development opportunities — like those offered here at WorkSource Pierce County — are so important. Because when you make strong workforce development programs like registered apprenticeships or high-quality work-based learning available to people, what you’re really doing is creating opportunity.”
In September, Murray helped to secure a $1 million federal grant to support workforce development programs in Western Washington. In February, she led a committee hearing on supporting workers struggling to find high-paying jobs. In the appropriations bill earlier this month, she helped secure an increase of $50 million for registered apprenticeship programs.
Alex Van Plueren, an Army veteran now serving in the National Guard, was one of the roundtable attendees and has worked in the WorkSource’s food system program at St. Leo’s food bank.
“All the extra help that we’ve been able to put into these food banks, St. Leo’s that’s right down the street, as an example, has been really instrumental as far as the impacts for the communities,” he said.
He said his experience so far “has been great,” working with St. Leo’s after his brother introduced him to the program.
“I’m just going to college. My roommate/brother/coworker … he now works as a supervisor at St. Leo’s and he said, ‘You have all this extra time after school, why don’t you come down to help with the food bank?’ So I took on that opportunity. And I take a lot of pride and joy to help our fellow coworkers there.”
Walsh asked him what he saw himself doing in the future.
“My personal goal is really just furthering my education,” he said. “When I was in the military, I worked in the IT communications area. So that’s what I continue to pursue. How long I stay in the National Guard? Maybe I’ll retire. Maybe I’ll get out sooner … that’s up in the air. But in short, it’s really just furthering what I’m good at the skills that I have, and continuing that wherever I may or may not end up.”
Another participant described going from living in her car and later spending time at a domestic violence shelter to eventually getting job retraining from a more-than 25-year career as a nurse. She was retrained as an office assistant, complete with learning computer skills as a senior, noting that “Goodwill saved my life.”
“Without computer training in America, you can’t really do anything,” she added.
The News Tribune is withholding her name as a domestic violence survivor.
Murray noted after listening, “This is called your government has your back, and we should be at the back of every single American … .”
The Tacoma event was one of two appearances Murray and Walsh made in the state Friday. In Seattle, they met with union representatives to hear from them and to promote the Protecting the Right to Organize Act, which Murray re-introduced in the Senate in February and would strengthen federal laws that protect workers’ right to unionize and bargain collectively. The measure passed the House earlier this month.
Walsh has been on a Northwest tour this week, visiting Portland, Oregon, on Thursday, to promote the Biden administration’s “Good Jobs” initiative, focusing on job quality and workforce training as well as create access to union jobs.
Walsh praised the local officials for their work particularly during the pandemic for being able to overcome various challenges and getting the CARES Act funding distributed.
“What’s happening here in Tacoma is a great example of what we need to take around the country,” he said. “Working collectively together and … putting Pierce County in that top five, how to spend the (CARES Act) money and really putting people first.”
This story was originally published March 26, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
