Building a jobs pipeline for Greater Boston and Massachusetts is crucial to the economic future and vitality of the city and region—and, as such, Workforce Development is a major focus of the Boston Foundation’s civic leadership activities. 

While Massachusetts has the most highly educated population in the country, the state struggles with a low literacy rate and a labor force that hasn’t grown at all since 2000.  Massachusetts was the only state in the nation to see its labor force decline between 2003 and 2005, with many talented young workers leaving the state to work in more affordable parts of the country.

The Boston Foundation encourages research and dialogue about the state’s labor supply and coordinates the SkillWorks initiative, the most ambitious workforce development initiative in Boston’s history.

Learn about the Boston Foundation’s grantmaking priorities in Workforce Development.

Workforce Development Spotlight:

SkillWorks In 2000 the Boston Foundation convened a group of public and private investors to begin planning an ambitious workforce development initiative. Fully launched in 2003, the SkillWorks initiative is a five-year, $15 million partnership among 14 local and national funders, including the City of Boston and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. In addition to its annual $500,000 contribution, the Boston Foundation coordinates what has become the largest and most ambitiou Learn more »

Indicators-related research: October 26, 2007 Connect to the Boston Indicators Economy Sector Data March 28, 2007 Mass Insight's Securing Massachusetts’s Leadership in Financial Services report discusses the economic contributions of the Financial Services sector to the Massachusetts economy.		Selected grants: December 14, 2006 Jewish Vocation Services December 14, 2006 English for New Bostonians
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Recent Workforce Development Reports:

Preventing a Brain Drain: Talent Retention in Greater Boston The health of Greater Boston's economy depends on a dynamic labor force. Our knowledge-based industries will succeed over the long term only with an educated work force committed to the Boston region. Greater Boston brings outstanding resources to this challenge. Our cluster of institutions of higher education serves as a cornerstone of the economy. We have an opportunity to cpaitalize even further on this strength. By working together, business and higher education can increase the likelihood that graduates will remain in the region and contribute to the vitality of the area's economy.    Read Report

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Workforce Development Forums:

Building a Jobs Pipeline: A Popular Forum on Our Economic Future January 31, 2007 The good news didn’t take long to impart to a crowd of more than 200 people who came to the Boston Foundation on January 31st for a fascinating forum on building a “jobs pipeline” for Massachusetts. Andrew Sum, Director of the Center for Labor Market Studies and an author of a report called Mass Economy: the Labor Supply and Our Economic Future, shared some of his alarming conclusions. “The good news is that Massachusetts has the most highly educated population in the country,” he said, “with 32.9% possessing a bachelor’s or higher degree. We also have a high literacy rate.”

Building Building a 21st Century Workforce: A Skillworks Forum on Job Opportunity June 29, 2006 Hundreds of people—from workers to representatives of unions, government and nonprofits—gathered at Roxbury Community College on June 29th to hear Massachusetts gubernatorial candidates speak about their commitment to workforce development. It was the first forum at which all major candidates for governor appeared.

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