Rosenberg Foundation - Recent Grant Partner Victory
Friday, March 2, 2012Securing Good Jobs for Oakland Residents
In a major victory for East Bay advocates, workers and residents, the Oakland City Council recently unanimously approved a comprehensive job benefits plan that could transform the city’s old Army Base into a thriving jobs center. This plan will guide the City’s negotiations with the Army Base developers towards a final deal.
For more than a year, the Oakland-based nonprofit East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy (EBASE) had been convening a broad group of stakeholders – called Revive Oakland – to reach consensus on the plan for the redevelopment of the Base. Once a major employer for the city and the surrounding East Bay, the Army Base’s closure in 1999 is estimated to have cost the region as many as 7,000 jobs.
The good jobs and community benefits plan won by EBASE and its allies would ensure workers the right to organize for better wages and would provide opportunities for formerly incarcerated individuals. Specifically, it sets groundbreaking expectations for this project, such as:
- In addition to the City’s 50 percent local hire goal for construction, all new apprentices on the project will come from Oakland and a share of the work each year will be for new apprentices.
- A quarter of the long-term jobs and apprenticeships will be for disadvantaged workers, and employers will “ban the box” removing the question on job applications about previous convictions. This would extend the City’s own non-discrimination hiring policy, one of the most progressive in the nation.
- Creation of a West Oakland Jobs Center and 50 percent local hire goal for long-term warehouse operations jobs, starting first with West Oakland and then other low income neighborhoods. This marks the first time Oakland has set local hire expectations for jobs beyond the construction phase.
“EBASE and Revive Oakland were able to build remarkable consensus on these goals through our unique blend of community organizing, coalition building, research and policy development, and advocacy with key decision makers,” said EBASE’s executive director, Nikki Fortunato Bas. “We also partnered with Oakland Rising to talk with 5,682 voters last fall, and found that over 80 percent support good jobs from the Army Base project. Now, we are turning our attention to the developers to ensure that they meet the important goals for this project.”
The successful effort was supported in part by the Rosenberg Foundation as part of the Foundation’s long-term strategy of strengthening capacity among California advocates advancing regional accountable development. The Foundation supports policy reform to advance solutions to California’s toughest challenges in the areas of justice and public safety, immigrant rights and justice for farmworkers. EBASE’s work offers concrete models within the accountable development movement to advance reentry employment strategies and immigrant workers’ rights. The Foundation has provided $525,000 in funding since 2002 to EBASE.
Founded in 2000, EBASE grew from an alliance between labor and community organizations into one of the anchor groups of the accountable economic development movement in California and is part of the national Partnership for Working Families. EBASE has been able to take advantage of major development projects to ensure high quality job opportunities for area residents, with a priority on employment for the formerly incarcerated. EBASE also has advocated for expanded opportunities for immigrant families, particularly by building leadership capacity among immigrant workers and by engaging faith-based leaders and community activists to advocate for just immigration policies that respect all workers.
For more information, contact the Rosenberg Foundation at 415-644-9777 or EBASE at 510-893-7106 or at info@workingeastbay.org.