MAYOR CURTATONE ANNOUNCES LOCAL JOBS ADVISORY PANEL

"This is an ideal time to develop

a jobs strategy based on the wealth of resources and knowledge available on

this topic - and based on the input of local business and community leaders as

well as the vocational and post secondary academic experts already working to

provide job skills and training to Somerville residents," said Mayor

Curtatone.  "The opportunity - and the

need - for a Jobs Advisory Committee flows naturally from a coming wave of

business development across the City, combined with the shared vision of our

economic future offered by the City's Comprehensive Plan and the long-term

analysis underway through the Future Economies Commission."  The Office of Strategic Planning and

Community Development Planning (OSPCD) submitted the draft SomerVision Comprehensive

Plan to the Board of Aldermen on February 23^rd; Mayor Curtatone

convened Future Economies Commission in October, 2011. 

SJAC membership includes:

• Alderman at Large Bruce Desmond (Chairman)
• Alderman at Large Jack Connolly
• Ronald Bonney, Jr., President/CEO, Bonney
  
  Automotive; Chair, Somerville Chamber of Commerce
• Dr. Susan Crandall, PhD., President, Workforce
  
  Results
• Leo DiSimone, Director of Career and Technical
  
  Education, Somerville High School
• Sam Millen, President/CEO, Cue Acoustics
• Janice Philpot, , Director, Somerville Center
  
  for Adult Learning Experiences (SCALE)
• Ray Zonghetti, Restaurant Consultant

Curtatone indicated he would

complete the panel by appointing one additional member from each of three

relevant City offices: the Mayor's Office; SomerStat; and OSPCD.

"On the whole, Somerville's job picture looks remarkably strong,

especially when compared to the rest of the state, and the nation as a whole,"

said Alderman at Large Bruce Desmond, who will chair the new advisory

group.  "With an unemployment rate of

only 4.5 percent, we're reaping the benefits of a well-educated local

workforce.  But there are still

well-qualified, highly motivated workers who are trying without success to find

jobs.  Plus, the vast majority of

Somerville residents who are working currently have jobs outside the City.  That's not an ideal situation.  We want to attract new businesses that will

increase our commercial tax base and we want to offer those employers a

convenient way to find local workers who match their needs."

"The Board of Aldermen has been focused on this issue for months, and

we're pleased to see the Mayor convene a high-profile advisory body," said Ward

2 Alderman Maryann Heuston, who had, with Desmond, co-sponsored a local hiring ordinance

in June, 2011.  "We're open to creative

approaches to boosting local jobs for local residents. The one thing we can't

afford is simply to ignore this challenge or hope that it will take care of

itself.  We need more employer engagement

and more active support for job-seekers. 

This committee should help achieve those goals," Heuston said.   

"The last thing Somerville should be doing is imposing hiring quotas or

artificial requirements on local employers. 

If you go down that road, you discourage new businesses from locating

here or local businesses from expanding," said Curtatone.  "But there's no reason why you can't develop

a jobs program that makes life easier and better for local business as well as

for local workers.  In Somerville and the

immediate area, we have many excellent resources for expertise in advising job

trainees and applicants on becoming truly employment ready.  We want them to advise us on what skills are

needed, and how workers can obtain them in a cost-effective way."

SJAC will report back to the Mayor by no later than this coming fall with

specific recommendations on how to leverage local resources to match local

workforce training and readiness efforts to local recruiting needs.  The recommendations will serve as the basis

for a pilot jobs program funded by $200,000 in community betterment funds in

the City's FY2013 budget.

"One of our city's best selling points is that we have an outstanding

workforce.  By fine-tuning worker

skill-sets to employer needs, and by introducing employers to pre-screened job

candidates, we believe that we can help both groups while building a stronger

local economy that's sustainable in the long term," Curtatone said.