Service Design Studio Programs Products Special Initiatives

Employment

NYC Opportunity advances evidence-based workforce strategies that address the needs of both low-wage workers and employers to help people enter and advance in employment.

NYC Opportunity has developed and evaluated a range of strategies to build the skills of low-wage workers, meet the needs of employers, and promote job placement, retention, and advancement. NYC Opportunity programs typically focus on particular industry sectors or communities, and tailor services to unique populations, such as individuals with criminal legal system involvement, young adults, or public housing residents. To monitor program effectiveness, NYC Opportunity and agency partners track service utilization and participant outcomes, such as occupational certifications attained, job placement levels, wages earned, and employment retention rates.

Programs

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Current Portfolio

Advance & Earn

Advance & Earn provides education and employment services to opportunity youth — youth ages 16–24 who are not currently working or attending school. The program supports participants' personalized career pathways through literacy instruction, High School Equivalency test preparation, employer-recognized trainings, credentials and certifications, and paid internships. The advanced trainings currently offered through the program include: Masonry and Landscaping, Certified Nurse's Aide and EKG/Phlebotomy Technician, Culinary Arts, Digital Marketing, Commercial Vehicle Driving, and Direct Support Professionals (caregiving to people with physical and/or intellectual disabilities).

To learn more, see the Advance & Earn Overview

Cannabis On-the-Job Training Program (In Development – Not Yet Launched)

The Cannabis On-the-Job Training (OTJ) Program is designed to promote equity in NYC's cannabis industry by developing a workforce equipped to take on new jobs in the field. This pilot program aims to 1) increase hiring of social equity jobseekers, and 2) reduce staff recruitment and training costs for cannabis businesses.
This program will design an OTJ training guide for the legal cannabis industry's rapidly growing supply chain, while also providing social equity jobseekers – individuals from NYC communities that were disproportionately harmed by cannabis prohibition before legalization in NYS – access to quality OTJ training and permanent job placement opportunities with licensed and ancillary employers in the cannabis industry.
Eligible cannabis businesses that successfully implement the training and commit to hiring from the program's jobseeker pool would be eligible for an OJT grant that will provide wage subsidies and training development support to offset costs of those new employees' onboarding. Grant funding will be available for a wide variety of positions in both the adult use and medical cannabis sectors, as well as in ancillary industries.

Co-Designing and Delivering Inclusive Employment Programs with and for People with Disabilities (In Development – Not Yet Launched)

The Co-Designing and Delivering Inclusive Employment Programs with and for People with Disabilities initiative will design and pilot a new workforce development program that supports jobseekers with disabilities in finding and keeping quality employment, build evidence for what works for employment programs for this population, and demonstrate how co-design with community members can be built into City government program development.

The program will begin with a "co-design phase" in which jobseekers, employers, workforce development service providers, and a service design firm will work together to define the most pressing challenges individuals with disabilities face in the job market and workplace. Next, they will craft programmatic solutions, and service providers will then be funded to implement these programs.
At its core, this initiative is guided by the principle of participatory co-design, ensuring that individuals with disabilities are actively involved in the design, research, and evaluation of the programs. Embracing the motto "Nothing About Us Without Us," this approach empowers those directly impacted by the programs to have a voice in decisionmaking, leading to more equitable and effective solutions.

Customized Training

Customized Training, formerly NYC Business Solutions Training Funds, provides financial support to businesses to help them train their workers in a way that increases their skills and wages, maintains business competitiveness by providing funding for business-aligned training, and helps to increase businesses' revenues as a result of that training. Employers commit to a wage gain for their employees upon completion of training. The program is funded by a blend of funds from NYC Opportunity, federal workforce funds, and a contribution of funds by the employer. NYC Opportunity funding specifically targets projects that involve low-wage workers.

Customized Training Evaluation Reports

Future Code NYC

Future Code NYC is an initiative that is focused on growing and diversifying New York City's technology workforce. The program provides low-income NYC residents with rigorous technical training, hands-on project experience, and post-graduation career support needed to embark on careers in software engineering. It collaborates with employers to design training programs that closely align with the evolving needs of the tech industry. NYC Opportunity's involvement in the program is particularly focused on building a pipeline and support systems for foster youth to be successful in the program.

Green Applied Projects for Parks

Green Applied Projects for Parks (GAPP) is a workforce development program at the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation. The program provides paid work experience, training, and career coaching to young adults ages 18-24 years, prioritizing individuals who have had involvement in the criminal legal system. Participants engage in employment readiness workshops, occupational certifications, training on horticulture, maintenance and operations, as well as assistance achieving educational goals such as high school equivalence (HSE) test preparation classes and drivers' license attainment. The program allows participants to acquire essential skills and fulfill work requirements to develop into strong candidates for permanent positions at Parks and beyond.

Jobs-Plus - YMI

Jobs-Plus is a place-based program for NYCHA residents with three core components: (1) on-site employment services, (2) financial education and rent-based and other incentives that help "make work pay," (3) community support for work that organizes neighbors to promote work and serve as a support network to overcome barriers.

NYC Opportunity launched the first City-funded Jobs-Plus site in East Harlem with its agency partners in 2009. With support from the federal Social Innovation Fund, NYC Opportunity established a second site in the South Bronx and a site in San Antonio, TX. Research on these sites helped inform the federal Jobs-Plus Initiative created by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in 2014. Since 2009 Jobs-Plus in NYC has grown to 10 sites serving 27 NYCHA developments, largely with the support of City funding through the Young Men's Initiative.

Informed by the Connections to Care model, Jobs-Plus staff at participating sites are receiving training to recognize and begin addressing clients' mental health needs, and to connect those with more serious concerns to clinical supports. This mental health component ensures that participants have access to integrated support through on-site clinical services and programming that is both trauma-informed and responsive to mental health needs.

Jobs-Plus Evaluation Reports

For more information visit the website of NYCHA.
For more information on Jobs-Plus research visit the website of MDRC.

NeON Works - YMI

NeON Works seeks to create supportive, youth-centered learning environments that implement a "one-size-fits-one" model to provide youth and young adults with the opportunity to acquire the knowledge, skills, and experience that prepare them for success in the workplace. NeON Works cultivates participants' agency in determining their own futures and provides three main services: professional development and career exploration workshops, individualized needs assessment and coaching, and supported connections to adult education, internships, and job placements. NeON Works is open to both people on probation and other residents in the seven communities where NeON sites are located. The program is funded by the Young Men's Initiative and implemented by the Department of Probation.

Work Progress Program

The Work Progress Program (WPP) provides wage reimbursements to community-based organizations seeking to provide short-term employment opportunities to the low-income young adults and opportunity youth. WPP is implemented in partnership with the NYC Human Resources Administration (HRA) and supports over 50 partner community-based organizations across the five boroughs. These CBOs enhance existing programming by providing short-term internships and work experiences for young people, reimbursing them for wages or stipends typically for part-time internships typically lasting 12 weeks. Participants gain professional experience and receive services to connect them with meaningful next steps such as employment, industry-based occupational training, and academic enrollment.
To learn more, visit the WPP website.
Work Progress Program - Implementation Study - 2014

Select Past Projects

The following list highlights a selection of projects previously supported by NYC Opportunity, some of which continue independently without our funding or oversight.

Advance at Work

Advance at Work aimed to reduce poverty and increase income for low-wage workers through job upgrades, access to work supports and asset-building activities. In partnership with the Department of Small Business Services (SBS), the program offered individual career coaching, access to training and education programs, enrollment in work supports, income and asset building information, financial incentives, and workshops. This program is currently inactive.
Workforce Innovations: Outcome Analysis of Outreach,Career Advancement and Sector-Focused Programs, 2010

Construction Works

Following Hurricane Sandy, Construction Works aimed to connect New York City residents to rebuilding opportunities by providing needed training in construction and related skills. The program partnered with multiple community based organizations in Sandy-affected communities to provide training and job placement assistance for local residents. This program is currently inactive.

Employment Works

Employment Works is a dedicated job preparation and placement program that serves individuals with a criminal conviction. The program works with job seekers to identify service needs, and to provide and/or connect participants to career counseling, occupational skills training, education services, and job placements. This program is not currently funded by NYC Opportunity. Lessons from this program informed existing and forthcoming SBS workforce programming.
Assessment of the Employment Works Program - 2013

Far Rockaway Economic Advancement Initiative

NYC Opportunity, NYC Small Business Services, and Citi Foundation partnered in this new model for a Workforce1 Career Center in the Far Rockaways. The Center provides enhanced services such as financial counseling and job readiness support, and occupational hard skills training on-site for local residents to facilitate placement into quality job opportunities.

NYC Training Guide

NYC Opportunity partnered with NYC Small Business Services to develop this new online tool for job training seekers to learn about different options for accessing occupational training. The site features provider outcomes and student reviews, to allow for better decision making by users. This program is currently inactive.

Restaurant Revitalization Program

The Restaurant Revitalization Program (RRP) launched in June 2020 to support restaurants and workers impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The $2 million program funds restaurants that have committed to paying a full minimum wage (before tips) to all employees over the next 3-5 years, promoting race and gender equity, and providing free meals to vulnerable community members, including those who are food insecure, essential workers, or others who are facing challenges during the pandemic. Each participating restaurant receives up to $30,000 to pay employees $20 per hour, for up to 12 weeks. The initiative is a collaboration with the Mayor's Fund to Advance New York City, and One Fair Wage – a nationally recognized advocacy organization working to raise employment standards and equity across the restaurant industry – which launched its High Road Kitchens program in NYC in June. This program is currently inactive.

Scholars at Work

Scholars at Work connected NYC high school Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs and college students to job exploration and paid internship opportunities. Scholars at Work participants received work-readiness training on site at their schools. A sub-set of student participants were also offered the opportunity to have paid internships at transportation or manufacturing companies. NYC Opportunity supported this program in its early years of development, and performance data indicated it was having success with participants. NYC Opportunity, in partnership with DOE and SBS, launched an evaluation of the program in 2017. The program was folded into the existing NYC Public Schools initiative called Industry Scholars. This program is currently inactive.

Scholars at Work Evaluation Reports

Sector-Focused Career Centers

Sector-Focused Career Centers help unemployed and low-income New Yorkers interested in accessing mid- and high-wage opportunities while helping employers in targeted industries to meet their human resource needs. The core components of the program prepare low-wage workers for a career in identified growth industries in the New York City economy. A NYC Opportunity evaluation of the program demonstrated its effectiveness in achieving higher employment, job retention and wages for participants in the sector sites compared to standard Career Centers, with particular benefits for those who received hard skills training.

Sector-Focused Career Centers Evaluation Reports

WorkAdvance

WorkAdvance sought to boost the earnings of unemployed and low-wage working adults by helping them obtain quality jobs in targeted sectors with opportunities for career growth. WorkAdvance sites, supported through federal Social Innovation Fund (SIF) and private support, were located in New York City, northeast Ohio, and Tulsa. The sites worked to prepare, train, and place unemployed and low-wage workers in good quality jobs with established career tracks, with each site focused on a particular sector. After placement, the program continued to assist participants to help them advance in their chosen careers. A rigorous random assignment evaluation of the program demonstrated its successful impacts in helping low-wage workers increase their earnings. This program is no longer funded by NYC Opportunity.

WorkAdvance Evaluation Reports

Young Adult Internship Program

The Young Adult Internship Program (YAIP) was designed recognizing that many young adults who are not working and not in school already possess the basic skills needed to enter the labor market and may need only a short-term intervention and work experience to connect to sustainable employment or educational programs. Participants in YAIP develop essential workforce skills through a combination of educational workshops, counseling, short-term paid internships, post-program follow-up services, and post-program placement in education, advanced training, or employment. This program is currently inactive. Lessons from this program informed the DYCD Advance & Earn program, which is currently active.