The Workforce Development Institute (WDI) is a statewide non-profit that works to increase opportunities for all New Yorkers to succeed in the workforce while earning family-sustaining wages.
Our key partners include unions in the Building and Construction Trades, private and public sectors, community based organizations (CBOs), education and training institutions, and employers in manufacturing, transportation, healthcare, and nonprofit.
These partnerships are built on our shared values of High-Road Employment. Together we create and support career opportunities that share common characteristics, including:
- Family-sustaining wages appropriate to the work and pay increases as skills and experience grow.
- Family-securing benefits including health insurance, retirement plans, paid leave, and education support.
- A safe, healthy, and accessible workplace with predictable and/or flexible working hours, and access to training and necessary protective equipment.
- Empowered workers who contribute to decisions about their work.
- Opportunities to gain new skills and advance through internal and external training and resources.
- Inclusive workplaces where all workers enjoy equal opportunity, are respected, and empowered.
- Opportunity to derive meaning, purpose, and personal alignment with mission and culture.
- Recruiting practices that widen the doors of opportunity by actively recruiting people from underrepresented communities, while limiting unnecessary educational and experience requirements.
We bring together partners creating job opportunities with those training the future workforce. This includes CBOs serving individuals from disadvantaged communities and priority populations. We broker these new relationships and then look for ways to support workers and employers to ensure people from all backgrounds can achieve economic self-sufficiency.
For working people, support can include training in the pre-requisites to qualify for a new job or to climb the career ladder. These may be foundational skills, technical competencies, or English language training. They may also include solutions to reduce the most common barriers workers face such as transportation and child care. Our Child Care Scholarship Program provides financial support to working families to offset child care costs and allow parents to spend on essential needs that contribute to their family’s well-being.
Our support for employers ensures they have the skilled workforce they need to overcome challenges and prepare for the future. With growth and expansion in advanced manufacturing, energy, and beyond, this means understanding supply chain opportunities and anticipating the skills workers will need to capitalize on opportunities. This includes our priority to increase opportunities for Minority- and Women-Owned Business Enterprises and Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Businesses.
We are proud to share our vision and our recent work on the following pages. As challenges and opportunities continue to arise, we continue to evolve our partnerships and solutions to ensure New Yorkers can thrive in their careers.
We invite you to look for opportunities to join us as we work to Strengthen New York’s Workforce.