ANNUAL REPORT
July 2023 – June 2024
Who We Are
Mission
WorkForce Central stewards the Pierce County workforce development system and bridges the gap between job seekers, employers, and community organizations to build a robust workforce and ensure economic vitality across the region.
Vision
Economic equity and prosperity for our customers and the region.
Our Role
Job Seeker Services
Explore & Train
Workers
Job Seekers
Business Solutions
Employ & Retain
Businesses
Regional Alignment
Engage & Align
Public
Private
Non-Profit
Reduce the gap between labor demand and available skills
Increase the percent of youth and adults connected to education, training, and quality, self-sufficient wage jobs.
Our Equity Journey
WorkForce Central is committed to building more equitable systems and anti-racist practices. We have been on a journey of identifying areas for improvement and implementing changes to reach those goals. In hopes of sharing our experience and encouraging our partners to examine their own systems, we created this Equity Timeline to map out our process.
The Communities We Served
While we serve all job seekers in Pierce County, our efforts focus on serving our priority populations—individual groups facing significant barriers to employment, including but not limited to people who are considered low-income, facing racial inequity, and impacted by the justice system. Our programs actively reach out to these groups to provide tailored services and support to overcome these challenges. In fact, this last year, more than 60% of the job seekers we served were either low-income and/or identified as a person of color.
14%
Experiencing Homelessness
17.4%
Single Parents
61.7%
Low Income
15.7%
Have a Disability
63.2%
Identify as a Person of Color
Jobs Seekers Served by Location
Hover over map to show the number of job seekers in each ZIP code
Job Seeker Services
Our workforce system focuses on tailoring services based on the individual, meeting them where they are at and providing job seekers with the support and training they need to find quality employment. Services include career coaching, financial education, digital literacy classes, specialized training opportunities, pre-apprenticeship programs, paid internships, and more. Last year, more than 400 individuals reported finding permanent employment after completing their program.
Outcomes
412
Employed at Program Exit
301
Placed in Paid Work Experience
Business Solutions
The Business Solutions team assists employers with strategies and solutions to address their workforce needs. With a focus on connecting employers with skilled employees, the team invested time and resources through the Good Jobs Challenge, focusing on training for job seekers in priority sectors (Construction and Manufacturing) as well as through the Work Experience program. Small Business and Employee Training grants through the Community Reinvestment Plan have also been instrumental in leveling the playing field for small business owners in Black, Latine, and Native American communities.
Outcomes
921
Total Businesses Served
1,895
Individual Services Provided
Regional Alignment
As the steward of Pierce County’s Workforce Development System, a big part of our job is to foster county-wide alignment among service providers and agencies to increase access to resources for the community. Our goals in this work are to strengthen the use and effectiveness of the Pierce County Common Referral System, strengthen alignment across partner organizations, and prioritize shared training for human-centered, equitable service delivery across partners.
Common Referral System
The Common Referral System is powered by United Way’s 2-1-1 and connects people to partners in the WorkSource Pierce Network. We continuously work to strengthen this system through networking, partnership, and continuing education with our partners.
17
Organizations Using the Common Referral System
3,478
Referrals Made with the Common Referral System
79%
of Referrals Made using the Common Referral System Received Follow-Up
1,084
Self-Referrals Made by Job Seekers
The WorkSource System
WorkSource Pierce is a network of providers, organizations, and people providing services to job seekers and employers in Pierce County. The majority of services are provided through a primary location at our One-Stop Center in Tacoma as well as at our satellite office at the South Hill Mall. Job seekers can also access services at partner and connection sites throughout Pierce County, including any Pierce County Library location.
5,929
Served at the WorkSource One-Stop
164
Served at the South Hill Mall office
1,767
Total People Engaged at Mobile One-Stop events
238
Total Partners Engaged at Mobile One-Stop Events
3
Mobile One-Stop Events Held
167
Attended the WorkSource Conference
Acknowledgements
Thank you to our partners, funders, and community for support and collaboration in this work for Pierce County residents and employers.
