Chicagoland Employers to Hire Over 1,000 Unemployed and Underemployed in 2016

Larissa M. Tyler | As of Thursday, February 25, 2016

Since its founding in September 2012, Skills for Chicagoland’s Future has placed more than 2,300 unemployed and underemployed job seekers into positions with more than 50 companies. The organization has a goal of placing 1,050 unemployed and underemployed Chicagoland residents into jobs in 2016.
Since its founding in September 2012, Skills for Chicagoland’s Future has placed more than 2,300 unemployed and underemployed job seekers into positions with more than 50 companies. The organization has a goal of placing 1,050 unemployed and underemployed Chicagoland residents into jobs in 2016.

What do Chicagoans need?

They need access to affordable healthcare and affordable housing. They need access to quality education from pre-school to college. They need to live in low crime neighborhoods so that their families can feel safe and sound and so that their property values can increase.

And how can Chicagoans attain these basic aspects of living a decent life?

This can be done simply through the opportunity of securing good jobs.

As we all know, without access to employment opportunities it is virtually impossible for a community to thrive. Fortunately, there’s at least one organization out there that understands this fact of life and is taking action so that many Chicagoans will have the opportunity to succeed in the job market.

Skills for Chicagoland’s Future (Skills)—is a public-private partnership that meets the hiring needs of employers by offering innovative solutions to place qualified, unemployed and underemployed candidates into available positions. The organization’s membership consists of 40 Chicagoland employers and collectively they have committed to hiring over 1,000 job seekers in 2016.

The Skills group maintains key partners including CDW, HMS Host, JPMorgan Chase, Levy Restaurants, Rush University Medical Center and TrueBlue leading the way for its initiatives.

And new partners are joining in 2016 including Alliance Ground International, Aramark, Glassdoor, Grainger, Mather LifeWays, Ostrow Reisin Berk & Abrams, Ltd., and Total Airport Services.

Returning employer partners include: 1871, AIM Specialty Health, America’s Dog, Bank of America, BMO Harris, Braintree, CDW, Ceannate, Divvy, Freedman Seating, Gap Inc., GoHealth Insurance, Harris & Harris, HMS Host, Hudson Group, JPMorgan Chase, Levy Restaurants, NorthShore University HealthSystem, Rush University Medical Center, Shiftgig, SPR Consulting, Swissport International LTD., The University of Chicago, The University of Chicago Medical Center, The Warranty Group, TrueBlue, Ulta Beauty, United Airlines, UPS, UST Global, Walgreens and Yelp.

 “We commend these employers for their commitment to reach deep into Chicagoland communities to find qualified, motivated job seekers to meet their hiring needs,” said Marie Trzupek Lynch, founding president and CEO of Skills for Chicagoland’s Future. “Skills’ demand-driven model and access to an immense pool of talent allows us to serve as a connector between employers and the communities most in need of economic opportunity.”

Skills for Chicagoland’s Future (Skills)—is a public-private partnership that meets the hiring needs of employers by offering innovative solutions to place qualified, unemployed and underemployed candidates into available positions. The organization’s membership consists of 40 Chicagoland employers and collectively they have committed to hiring over 1,000 job seekers in 2016.

The Skills group maintains key partners including CDW, HMS Host, JPMorgan Chase, Levy Restaurants, Rush University Medical Center and TrueBlue leading the way for its initiatives.

And new partners are joining in 2016 including Alliance Ground International, Aramark, Glassdoor, Grainger, Mather LifeWays, Ostrow Reisin Berk & Abrams, Ltd., and Total Airport Services.

Returning employer partners include: 1871, AIM Specialty Health, America’s Dog, Bank of America, BMO Harris, Braintree, CDW, Ceannate, Divvy, Exelon, Freedman Seating, Gap Inc., GoHealth Insurance, Harris & Harris, HMS Host, Hudson Group, JPMorgan Chase, Levy Restaurants, NorthShore University HealthSystem, Rush University Medical Center, Shiftgig, SPR Consulting, Swissport International LTD., The University of Chicago, The University of Chicago Medical Center, The Warranty Group, TrueBlue, Ulta Beauty, United Airlines, UPS, UST Global, Walgreens and Yelp.

 “We commend these employers for their commitment to reach deep into Chicagoland communities to find qualified, motivated job seekers to meet their hiring needs,” said Marie Trzupek Lynch, founding president and CEO of Skills for Chicagoland’s Future. “Skills’ demand-driven model and access to an immense pool of talent allows us to serve as a connector between employers and the communities most in need of economic opportunity.”

 “Skills for Chicagoland's Future has taken an innovative approach to putting thousands of unemployed and underemployed Chicagoans back to work, and will continue making a meaningful difference as they assist another 1,000 individuals in gaining employment this year,” said Mayor Rahm Emanuel. “I want to thank Skills for Chicagoland's Future for being an important partner to the City when it comes to providing employment and job training opportunities. By continuing to work together, we will help more families succeed, more of our local businesses prosper, and more of our neighborhoods grow stronger."

Skills has continued to strengthen its relationships with existing partners and has made increasing inroads into Chicagoland’s tech and startup sectors, in which employers have seen value in Skills’ ability to provide qualified workers and increase the diversity of their employee base. Both Yelp and Shiftgig began their partnerships with Skills in 2015. Of the 20 candidates hired by both Yelp and Shiftgig, 65 percent were diversity hires. Both companies have doubled their hiring commitments with Skills in 2016.

Since its founding in September 2012, Skills has placed more than 2,300 unemployed and underemployed job seekers into positions with more than 50 companies. The organization has a goal of placing 1,050 unemployed and underemployed Chicagoland residents into jobs in 2016. Approximately 58 percent of the candidates Skills placed in 2015 were considered long-term unemployed with an average unemployment duration of 18 months. More than 40 percent of the unemployed job seekers Skills placed in 2015 were from Chicago communities with unemployment rates over 20 percent, including Austin, Chatham/Avalon Park, South Shore, Auburn Gresham and South Chicago.

 For more information, visit www.skillsforchicagolandsfuture.com or call 312-906-7200.

Latest Stories

Latest Podcast

Sydney Blaylock-The local skater with national experience