New York Times
May 3, 2010
A profile of Put Illinois to Work, a statewide jobs initiative administered by Heartland Alliance.
From New York Times:
Amid the hum of a South Side commercial laundry, two young women fed newly cleaned aprons into a machine that had eight rollers rotating slowly over a large metal plate.
At the other end were colleagues who accepted and folded the ironed linens to be delivered to hotels, restaurants and banquet halls. For the two women, Kiana Miles and Elana Williams, the machine and its unceasing routine are engines for a fresh start in life.
Ms. Miles, 19 and a single mother, and Ms. Williams, 24 and recently homeless, just finished a second week at the DeNormandie Towel and Linen Supply Company. They’re delighted to be employed, with Ms. Miles willing to rise at 5:15 a.m. and take two long bus rides to start work at 7.
They benefit from Put Illinois to Work, a program announced by Gov. Patrick J. Quinn last week amid skimpy news media coverage at odds with the state’s economic travail. The effort, which started April 1, involves $215 million in federal stimulus dollars funneled through the existing Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Emergency Fund.
So far, it suggests efficiency and creativity by a much-maligned state administration. You can chide Governor Quinn for not getting any traction for his tax program, but you’ve got to give him credit for getting some people back to work.
The state fulfilled a 20-percent match requirement by having employers provide in-kind contributions in training. In return for the federal government’s picking up the $10-an-hour salary, employers provide oversight and instruction in “soft skills” like timeliness and collegiality.
It’s not the traditional work force training program — aimed at creating higher-skilled workers — which has an uneven history. This one deals narrowly with an economic emergency and singles out those dependent on child care; seeks to employ 20,000 people statewide by mid-June; plans active outreach, including through churches; and uses subcontractor groups to provide site visits.
The money runs out on Sept. 30. Then tax credits kick in for employers who keep the new workers full-time. Even if the workers are cut loose, the hope is that they will have gained new skills.
“I’ve been in this field for 32 years, and this is unprecedented,” said Joseph A. Antolin, vice president of the Heartland Alliance. The group is a service-based nonprofit that focuses on economic, housing, health and legal issues for the needy and is the central administrative coordinator of the program.
“There’s little bureaucracy, and this gets people back to work quickly,” Mr. Antolin said of the program.
John Dernis, co-owner of the family-run Michael’s Fresh Market, appreciates the overriding need. In February, Mr. Dernis received 2,500 applications for 80 jobs at a new store in Downers Grove. He will hire five to seven workers under the needy families program, to stock shelves and work as cashiers.
“I think this is a great idea,” he said, and praised the state’s performance so far.
Mr. Dernis raised the prospect that some of the hires could work out so well that “we’ll train them to be butchers, managers, whatever.”
