End of Year Reflections from CJC’s CEO
CEO Lisa Bly-Jones address the audience at the CJC 42nd Annual Meeting on June 16th, 2023
Happy Holidays to the CJC Community!
We have officially entered the holiday season and the end of the year is quickly drawing to a close. This hasn’t been an easy year and yet, we can remain hopeful. As a global society, wars happening on other continents are deeply affecting our local communities.
It’s during times like these that as we endure heartache and pain as a collective, we continue to create solutions to take care of the most vulnerable.
The end of a year is a good time for reflection, while also providing an opportunity to look ahead. It’s a time to look back on the year and see what we dared to tackle, what we were able to advance, and determine what more we must do. It’s a time to connect and enjoy colleagues and friends we work closely with and those who we didn’t see as often as we would have liked.
Since September, I have been a panelist on several occasions and was afforded the right set of circumstances to advocate on behalf of CJC member organizations and in support of jobseekers who face barriers to employment. My consistent message to each audience is that CJC is keenly focused on honoring the full humanity of workers who are seeking economic security and facilitating transformative relationships to address the larger economic system.
For far too long, Black and Brown communities have been left behind when planning for economic development and job creation is underway. CJC is closely following the implementation of the Illinois’ Climate and Equitable Jobs Act (CEJA) in support of ensuring that the spirit of the law is maintained and that environmental justice communities are prioritized to meet diversity and equity requirements. CEJA has the potential to increase racial outcomes in the clean energy economy with supply and demand by working with contractors and small clean energy businesses, as well as training and developing a career pipeline for the sector.
As we convene a wide range of stakeholders and share our aspirational vision for the workforce system, we acknowledge that the workplace is continuing to evolve. Relationships of trust are mission critical as expectations from employees and employers are being negotiated from sector to sector with a growing momentum of organized labor unions. There is an idea that “Rising Tides lift all boats,” and if jobs are unionized, that could very easily be the road to improving job quality for workers. Advocates are open to this and want to see the benefits of good theory being put into action.
With more and more federal investments being made to states through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, workforce funding and efforts are expanding to a variety of State Of Illinois Agencies. More than ever before, the state of Illinois needs an interoperable workforce system to maximize resources, streamline efforts, and increase efficiencies. From the federal to the state and down to the local level, we want workforce investments to be felt and realized by individuals who are most in need of being served.
Thank you for what we accomplished together over the last year, and I look forward to your continued partnerships and support as we advance our work in 2024.
Wishing you a joyous season and a Happy New Year!
Dr. Lisa Bly-Jones, Ed.D.
CEO, Chicago Jobs Council