Anti-poverty agency chipping away at labor shortages and upskilling workforce
WHO: ABCD President and CEO Sharon Scott-Chandler, Masshire Metro North Workforce Board President and CEO Chris Albrizio-Lee, Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development Undersecretary of Workforce Development Alysia Ordway, Woburn Mayor Mike Concannon, Massachusetts State Senator Cindy Friedman, Representative Michelle Ciccolo of Lexington and members of the Woburn City Council.
WHAT: Grand Opening of the ABCD-Operated MassHire Metro North Career Center in Woburn (MNCC).
WHY: According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics more than 200,000 positions remain unfilled in Massachusetts. This Woburn expansion provides greater accessibility for clients who use public transportation or who are physically challenged, and is illustrative of ABCD’s commitment to infrastructure that improves access, support, and therefore equity for all jobseekers. The Woburn expansion, along with other ABCD-operated MNCC programs impacting the state’s workforce shortages include: the BRIDGES Returning Citizens Center — a specialized career center that offers employment and training to individuals ages 18-25 who are returning from incarceration, and places them in industries that are greatly in need of qualified workers; partnership with Rare for the Solar Helping Ignite Neighborhood Economies (SHINE) initiative that connects solar power jobs and renewable home energy to underserved residents and neighborhoods in Boston that have challenges accessing both; and a joint initiative – Building Reentry and Vocation Opportunities with the Benjamin Franklin Cummings Institute of Technology that offers students from the college’s School of Reentry program training for clean energy careers, including HVAC/R, heat pump technology, EV maintenance, practical electricity, and engineering technology.
ABCD operates the MassHire Metro North Career Center with locations in Cambridge, Chelsea and Woburn and the MassHire Boston ABCD Career Center.
WHERE: 800 West Cummings Park, Suite 6400, Woburn, MA 01801
WHEN: Friday, October 11, 2024; 10:00 a.m. – Noon
10:05 a.m. -10:45 a.m. – Tour of new space
11:00 a.m. -11:40 a.m. – remarks from ABCD leadership and government leaders
11:45 a.m. – Ribbon Cutting
