Job training

Ask Joe Newsome the value of Providence Place, and he’ll tell that you
he hopes it’s in the jobs it provides for Providence residents, and the
benefits that might result in the city’s economically struggling
neighborhoods.
Newsome is president and executive director of the South Providence
Development Corporation, a non-profit coalition of businesses, hospitals
and social service agencies working to improve the economic climate of
South Providence. Newsome’s mission is to help dislocated workers and
immigrants get the proper training so they can enter or re-enter the
workforce.
Newsome, however, does not have a lot of money to turn good ideas –
including one to train dislocated workers specifically for jobs at
Providence Place – into viable employment opportunities.
So Newsome is asking the state and the city to make sure the projects
that now represent Providence’s renaissance become examples of what he
calls “linked development.” That means making sure that major
development projects address the needs of neighborhoods and include
provisions for job training and employment.
We don’t always agree that developers should be saddled with the
concept of linked development. However, we do believe that when tax
incentives or other considerations are accepted by a developer, then
linked development is appropriate.
Newsome is not asking directly for jobs but for the means to develop
training programs that will prepare individuals to compete for jobs.
Newsome is hoping to meet with the governor and legislative leaders to
discuss the issue after the first of the year.
Newsome will be looking for funds for specific job training programs
for individuals who Newsome said could not otherwise afford them.
Without the training, it is unlikely these individuals would be able to
compete for the jobs.
Downtown looks remarkable and everyone who has had a hand in this
renaissance should be proud. But it would not have been possible without
certain incentives, and therefore would be virtually meaningless if it
did not lead to some sort of job training for those who could not
otherwise afford it.