Michael Flaherty believes that providing jobs for our young people is an important solution in the battle against youth violent crime. Specifically, he sees the $6.5 million that the city has received from the federal recovery bill’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program as an opportunity to advance the city’s energy agenda while creating green jobs for at-risk youth at the same time.
-Natasha Perez, Communications Director, Flaherty for Mayor Committee
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I think this is a really important issue that Councilor Flaherty is bringing up. We need to offer real jobs to our youth as an alternative to crime. What I like about the plan is that it uses the Federal Stimulus package to create a more sustainable Boston and jobs that are in line with new green economy, and are also given to local residents.
Michael Flaherty’s on the ball with this plan. Not only will jobs be offered to youth, which will be an alternative to crime, it will give back some of the jobs to the 20% that were lost within the construction field. It is important to keep these jobs in order to maintain the middle class. Without these jobs in place, we are apt to eventually lose the middle class and end up like Manhattan. I especially like the idea of bringing the “Green” to City Hall instead of bringing City Hall to the waterfront. People have always said how “ugly” City Hall is; apparently, Michael Flaherty has found a way to help us see it in a better light. With this plan, it’s a win-win situation. Creating jobs, saving energy, and saving money. I’m not seeing a down side.
An observation: Most of the construction jobs never touched the 80% of kids in boston public schools who are black or hispanic. Look at the trade union membership demographics.
somebody needed to bring this up and maybe it will even get Mayor Menino to open his mouth about something. I would like some more details though. Would an entirely new department have to be created to manage a program like this? Also, what specific jobs would be created? How do people apply and get chosen and what-not?
Currently, the summer jobs program is run through the Boston Youth Fund. We would like to see many of these jobs targeted to the new green economy. The process would remain in place for applying and being accepted. In the future we would like to see a green jobs corps for youth that could potentially be run out of DND as they have already done this on a very small scale. A green jobs corps run out of DND, would require partnerships with the academic community, unions, workforce training programs, and business community.
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p>Boston should follow the lead of Oakland CA who became the first U.S. city to invest in a green collar job training program when it agreed to provide seed money for a pilot training program ($250,000). Specifically, Oakland’s “Green Jobs Corp” is built on a partnership between labor unions, the community college system, and the city. Together, these partners will train and employ its residents – particularly those hard-to-employ constituencies – to fill new jobs that are emerging from the quickly growing green economy. Upon completion, participants – who will have acquired literacy and vocational training as well as honed life skills – will receive support and guidance from the city as they seek long-term employment.
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p>The impacts of moving to a low-carbon economy and putting money toward energy efficiency, building retrofits and renewable energy projects can create significantly more jobs in the long run than the same investment in fossil fuel industries.
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p>In addition to creating these new jobs — and trimming the Boston’s carbon footprint, investment will also make well paid labor jobs available on a large scale to working-class, blue-collar and less-educated workers. These jobs offer a solid job ladder for workers to steadily improve their wages as they grow their skills.
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p>Michael believes, we need to change how our economy works and it’s the obligation of City government to put policies in place to allow this economy to grow differently.”
We should be focusing our green efforts around retrofits, the most immediately beneficial being energy efficiency retrofits for existing buildings. Retrofits right now are a known technology, which creates fast returns with low risk and creates a lot of quality jobs in the construction industry.
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p>Michael believes that in the immediate term, energy efficiency is going to be the best investment for our Cities future and we have too much at risk to delay.
Michael recognizes that the emergence of the green sector represents a major opportunity to rebound from the current economic crisis and to provide job opportunities to many Bostonians – especially those who have historically faced numerous barriers to employment, such as low-skilled workers, high school drop-outs, ESL residents, at-risk youth and individuals who were formerly incarcerated. In fact, a 2008 report put out by the University Massachusetts Amherst and Center for American Progress maintained that only a “green recovery” will get the nation back on strong financial ground. The success of the city’s ability to grow its green sector and achieve such “green recovery” is contingent upon whether we have a properly trained and ready workforce.
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p>Green Biz reported last week that green investment will bring 300% more jobs.
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p>Two new reports on the impacts of moving to a low-carbon economy show putting money toward energy efficiency, building retrofits and renewable energy projects can create 1.7 million new jobs, significantly more than the same investment in fossil fuel industries.
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p>The reports were released today in tandem by four groups: Green for All, the Natural Resources Defense Council and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst’s Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) worked together on the “Green Prosperity” study, while PERI also worked with the Center for American Progress on the “Economic Benefits” report.
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p>Together, the reports show the economic, environmental and social impacts of investing about $150 billion per year in energy efficiency and clean energy technologies; that number includes funding from the federal stimulus package signed into law in February as well as the proposals in the Waxman-Markey climate bill that is currently making its way through Congress.
http://www.reuters.com/article/gwmCarbonEmissions/idUS108166118320090618
This is good stuff and I’m glad Flaherty is talking about it. But why didn’t he join with Yoon, Turner and Arroyo when they were fighting for youth in the budget? I remember when the kids went to City Hall. What did President Flaherty do? Threw them out. I was there because I worked with young people. I think Youth Workers will remember that.
I do remember that. It was Councilor Yoon who was leading a crowd of kids into City Hall in order to fight for an increase in funding for youth jobs programs while Councilor Flaherty was calling the police to ban them from the building!
Please review the following Globe story by Matt Viser to understand why the youth protesters where asked to leave the chamber during the 2006 budget debate.
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It definitely does seem that Flaherty was not sympathetic to the need for youth jobs back then.
I don’t think the article proves Flaherty was unsympathetic to youth back then. I believe the only thing it proved was that the youth were behaving in a manner that was inappropriate. Had they behaved (and dressed) in a more appropriate manner, maybe they would have then had the opportunity to be heard instead of asked to leave.
From what I hear Flaherty is an okay guy (definitely more so than Menino), but I have friends who work in youth services that still have a bad taste in their mouth from when he threw these kids out of the chamber. I guess the real question is whether this youth orientation is a true change in thought or an election year “come to Jesus” moment to capitalize on the idea of change? Either way I think Yoon has been more consistent on youth issues as a member of the Council.
Regardless of what occurred on City Hall with those youth workers, Michael Flaherty is a true supporter of the growing youth. I don’t think this is a “come to Jesus” moment in order to capitalize on the election. I think its more of a rejuvenated thought process that addresses the current society that we live in. The energy crisis not only affects the environment but also affects the way the economy grows and the current stagnant job sector. Although youth jobs and energy have always been consistent issues, they are two issues which are much more prominent now than they were years ago. They have become more significant issues because of their affect on the Boston residents and they need to be addressed.
Now that Flaherty is running for Mayor he suddenly is interested in addressing the youth violence issue by creating you jobs!?! Convenient. It has been Yoon that has consistently advocated for funding for youth jobs and even better, engaged them in city politics. Flaherty on the other hand, had 300 youth thrown out of city hall in 2006 when they were advocating for more youth jobs funding in the budget.
There is nothing sudden about Flaherty’s interest in addressing youth violence or creating youth jobs. The 300 children that Flaherty had to ask to leave City Hall should have been taught beforhand that there is a difference between a civilized rally and totally unruly, rude behavior.
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p>Michael has a very strong record of advocating for jobs for both youth and those facing barriers to employment such as CORI issues.
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p>During the state’s consideration of providing funding for green collar workforce training programs, Michael delivered testimony at a public hearing to urge his colleagues at the State House to set aside money to train workers who have been previously shut out from quality job opportunities. In 2008, Michael convened a City Council hearing to discuss what the city was doing to ensure a trained green job workforce and specifically, how it was tailoring its programs to empower disenfranchised populations. Michael has repeatedly called upon the city to make the program more expansive to include green construction training so that local workers are prepared to work on the city’s local energy retrofits – big and small, public and private. In addition, Michael has advocated for a green jobs program that includes a paid internship component and wrap around support services because he recognizes that some degree of compensation and services – like access to affordable childcare – are critical to participants’ ability to successfully complete training programs.
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p>Michael has repeatedly called for the city to integrate energy upgrades of municipal buildings with workforce development strategies, specifically green collar job training for those residents facing barriers to employment. The federal stimulus bill included $3.2 billion for its Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants (EECBG). When the city of Boston identified twenty municipal projects that they deemed eligible for this funding, Michael urged the city to select initiatives for funding that are directly tied to the creation of jobs, and to use those initiatives as on-the-job training for Boston workers so that they are prepared to fill these new jobs, and those funded by future energy efficiency appropriations. We will do our city a great disservice and undermine the goal to achieve economic equality if we decide that these jobs will only go to workers who already have the skills and connections.
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p>The emerging green jobs sector underscores the importance of figuring out how to make the Boston Residents Jobs Policy (BRJP) work in the way it was intended so that residents, minorities and women are properly represented in today’s new workforce. As a strong proponent of the BRJP program, Michael cosponsored a measure calling for tougher monitoring to ensure that the jobs emerging from stimulus-funded projects were given to local residents. Michael ardently believes that the long-term impact of federal recovery funds will only go so far if we aren’t putting our own residents to work.
For a number of years, Mayor Menino has put about $4 million of city funds into summer jobs, one of the only major cities in the country to do so. As a result, when new money came in from the federal stimulus, Boston was in the forefront of helping many other cities around the country gear up for a summer jobs program as most had terminated theirs when the feds pulled out of this business years ago (a lot of cities do their summer jobs programs via the Private Industry Councils). Boston has also been in the forefront of lobbying the state for summer jobs money every year (I know, I did that for years) and managed to get the program forward funded so that communities across the state didn’t have to worry in June whether they would have state funds for summer jobs when the program began a week or two later.
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p>One of the groups I now work with, The Food Project on Dudley Street in Dorchester, does urban farming on a nearby site and has received City summer jobs money to support young people working there. That’s a “green jobs” initiative, and there are many others working through non-profits across the city. It’s great to come up with neatly labeled new proposals, but the fact is, the mayors of this country, Tom Menino included, worked hard to get this new federal grant, which will fund a wide range of “green” programs in the city, building upon the strong record of the current Administration (tough LEED standards for construction, exploration of wind and solar power options, expanded recycling, appointment of a “bike czar”,support for urban agriculture, major expansion of green space, etc). The Administration is also releasing its latest “green jobs” RFP at Bikes Not Bombs in JP today.
It is interesting that the candidates running for Mayor are seeking alternatives to curbing violence among urban youth. Flaherty has taken to introducing “green jobs” utilizing federal funding, Yoon is advocating for summer jobs as an intervention for helping “at risk” youth, and Menino has a colorful history of providing urban youth with summer jobs through partnerships with corporate and non-profit organizations. As it stands, the aforementioned “additives” only serve as a means of placing a bandage over the problem. Simply put… it’s a quick fix to an ongoing circulatory problem that has been plaguing urban communities for much too long. More is needed from our elected officials in order to reduce the issue of urban violence. Many of our urban youth are raised by single parent female headed households, without the presence of a male figure in their homes. The lack of parental authority is non existent as the parent(s) are forced to work several jobs in order to make ends meet. Without constraints and barriers urban youth are now being raised by the “streets.” What Boston needs is a leader who understands and can relate to the daily problems urban youth face in their communities. A leader who is not afraid to come to our neighborhoods and walk the streets of Boston to see first hand how gritty “street life” can be. Once this is done then we will be willing to be receptive to your solutions. Summer employment is temporary. Yet therein the problem still remains and violence will forever be a tattooed mark in our communities. It is time for action and change is paramount. This is indicative in the election of Barak Obama as President and the nomination of Sonia Sotomayor appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court. Boston needs an aggressive leader who is not afraid of confronting the issues of urban violence. We want to feel secure and protected in our communities and it is the responsibility of our elected officials to offer “realistic solutions.” With that being said, Menino, Flaherty, and Yoon… can we rely on your “political platforms” to assist in this endeavor? The question has been posed … and idle talk is not needed action is warranted! The city of Boston deserves this after all… don’t you agree?