Minutes

Chair Tiffany Rotondo called the meeting to order at 7:35 a.m.

• There was no public comment.

• Motion to approve by Alan Mindlin       
• Second by Joe Cassidy
• All ayes, motion APPROVED

The group continued the discussion about increasing the training cap. Jamie reviewed the DuPage County Workforce Development Self-Sufficiency Policy which is define as a household income of 250% or higher of the LLSIL established by the Department of Labor. Based on this information, the self-sufficient wage for a household of one is $35,521 annually or $17.07/hour. Based upon this data, Jamie identified healthcare occupations that result in a self-sufficient wage and are over the 10K training cap. Data was also presented on LPN wages, as this healthcare occupation is frequently funded with ITAs. LPN data was presented on customers who have received an ITA for LPN within the last program year.  The data demonstrates a significant increase in wages for customers who completed LPN training. The group discussed the training approval process and how increasing the cap could affect the ability to serve customers. The group wants to ensure that increasing the cap for specific occupations will not have a negative impact on the number of customers served. Based upon the numbers, the impact would not be substantial, and Jamie reminded the group that the cap would not be increased if there was not funding available or if there was a cut in funding at some point in the future. The group suggested that the training cap be raised to 12K for identified healthcare occupations and possibly diesel training. Jamie will discuss this with Director Lisa Schvach and the management team and write a policy to present at the next meeting.

Jamie updated the group on the Youth RFP submissions. There were four respondents to the RFP, two of which are new providers which is a result of outreach and new partnerships developed with organizations.

Historically, the same providers have responded to RFPs and it is exciting to see new providers coming to the table. Also, FITM has begun programming for youth in the jail which is an example of new and innovative youth programming.

At the most recent full Board meeting, Diana Robinson suggested writing a letter to DCEO on behalf of the Board to express concern about not being able to reach workers laid off as a result of a WARN event. Jamie discussed it with Susi, the Rapid Response Liaison. Susi explained that DCEO sends out the initial email to companies and Susi is going to work with the DCEO representative to possibly reword the initial email sent to companies in the hopes of getting a better response. Additionally, Susi and her team are working to develop strategies to increase outreach to companies locally so there is not a reliance on an HR office out of state.  Also, Jamie and Susi will be more proactive about reaching out to WIB members when there is a WARN event to determine if anyone has a relationship with the local HR office. Another strategy would be to utilize the website to increase attention to WARN events and drive people to the workNet site who are searching for outplacement services.

The group discussed soft skills and the continued struggle to address the issue. This has been an ongoing issue and it has been difficult to find a formal training program. Joe commented that he would be able to build something online. Another idea is to utilize an assessment tool to address soft skills and possibly build it into a workshop.

Joe provided the group with an update on Innovation DuPage.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:54 a.m.