Boston mayoral hopefuls pitch workforce development ideas
BOSTON (SHNS) – Five Boston mayoral hopefuls pitched their workforce development visions and records Thursday, voicing broad agreement on the need to improve access to child care and offering ideas for how to help connect immigrants learning English and people returning from incarceration with jobs.
The Job Training Alliance, a coalition of 18 job training providers, hosted the five candidates — City Councilors Michelle Wu, Andrea Campbell and Annissa Essaibi George, state Rep. Jon Santiago and Boston Chief of Economic Development John Barros — for a virtual forum. Acting Mayor Kim Janey, who is also seeking a full term in City Hall, was unable to attend, said moderator Andre Green, the executive director of SkillWorks.
Boston’s City Council on Wednesday voted to move up the preliminary mayoral election to Tuesday, Sept. 14, a date that will fall just about three weeks after Janey’s Aug. 22 target for lifting all remaining COVID-19 industry restrictions and allowing the final group of still-closed businesses, including nightclubs, to reopen.
The city’s next mayor will help chart a course for its post-pandemic economic recovery, including for workers who lost their jobs during the COVID-19 crisis and others who left the workforce to care for children home from school and other family members.
Read more: https://www.wwlp.com/news/political-news/boston-mayoral-hopefuls-pitch-workforce-development-ideas/