Overview
Port Jobs leverages its unique partnerships with government, nonprofit, labor and business to develop and support other employment opportunities throughout King County.
In Detail
Apprentice Utilization Agreements
Port Jobs enters into Memoranda of Agreement with private and public developers on a project-by-project basis. These agreements represent the voluntary commitment on the part of the contractor or developer to use apprentice labor equaling 15% or more of the total labor hours on a given construction project.
Such agreements help to ensure a steady demand for apprentices, thereby strengthening the apprenticeship system and creating an adequate supply of skilled tradespeople for the future. Private developers who have signed agreements with Port Jobs include Vulcan Northwest, Amgen, Harbor Properties, and Pine Street Development.
Seattle Conservation Corps
The Seattle Conservation Corps is a program of the City of Seattle Parks and Recreation Department. It provides homeless adults with work, training, case management, and other support. Since its inception it has served more than 1,100 people. All program graduates have obtained permanent employment.
The Corps is supported primarily by fee-for-service contracts, the bulk of which are with the Port of Seattle, City of Seattle, and King County. One of the first projects of Port Jobs when it was created in 1993 was to facilitate the agreement between the Port and City which allows for the Port to contract with the Corps.
Port Jobs has continued performing this function as the contract has periodically come before the Port Commission for renewal. As a result of agreement, the Corps has been able to contract with the Port for over $1.5 million in small works projects, accounting for one-sixth of its overall operating budget and employing an average of 8 - 10 people per year.
Sea-Tac Lost and Found
In 1998, Port Jobs, Washington Works and the Port of Seattle joined together to develop a paid internship program that provides on-the-job training in the areas of customer service, inventory management and other related occupational skills.
The Airport Lost and Found was managed by Washington Works, which employed Manager/Trainers to supervise the interns. Each year, eight to ten graduates of Washington Works' basic skills course served in internships of up to six months. The interns, who were paid about $9.00 per hour, were placed in permanent jobs after completing their internships.
The program reaped benefits for the interns as well as improved customer service at Sea-Tac International Airport. Under this management system, the rate of lost luggage returned to passengers vastly increased compared to the previous system.
In 2002, Washington Works was forced to close its doors due to funding shortages. Port Jobs worked with the Port of Seattle and Washington Works to find a suitable replacement contractor. As a result, the YWCA was selected to operate the Airport Lost and Found and is continuing the tradition of success enjoyed by the program.
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