The labor market continues to be a challenge for employers and there are no signs of that letting up in the near future. Employers are struggling to find employees with the skills needed to fill their jobs. The Havenwoods BID has been exploring different ways to help match job seekers with the right companies. To do this we are collaborating with Milwaukee Area Technical College and the Menomonee River Valley BID to design and implement a niche workforce development initiative referred to as JobUp Milwaukee. After a year of researching various cooperative models between academia and employment, together we built a workforce initiative that specifically targets students studying subjects that match the jobs in Havenwoods and the Menomonee River Valley. The industry clusters that JobUp is currently serving include manufacturing, business, and healthcare management.
Thanks to funding from the Greater Milwaukee Foundation, Bader Philanthropies and JP Morgan Chase, in April we began signing employers on to JobUp and recruiting students for job placements. If you would like to learn more about this program please call or email Stephanie Harling at 414-431-2274; sharling@havenwoods.org
“They (Hentzen Coatings) have provided me everything I need to be able to complete my tasks. My management is amazing at helping me learn and achieve success with the company. I feel like I really have learned a lot, especially when it comes to paint. The testing is also relevant to the Chem Tech program. I really am happy with this position currently. I plan on staying for a while.”
– Cyle Kraft, JobUp participant