Connect with The Partnership
Shoshiwa Shields, Manager of Construction Initiatives
Email construction@chicookworks.org
Nichole Morrison, Construction Initiatives Program Coordinator
Email nmorrison@chicookworks.org
Charles Townsend, Construction Initiatives Program Coordinator
The Partnership works with the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority (The Tollway), the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA), the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT), and the City of Chicago to recruit and place individuals in construction sector employment. The Partnership administers several construction trades initiatives that meet industry demand for training and apprenticeship programs with public agencies and private contractors. The Partnership works to ensure that women and people of color, who have traditionally been excluded from these unionized career opportunities with family-sustaining wages, have access to a career in this sector.
Since 2018, The Partnership has served more than 2,300 candidates for apprenticeship programs and private contractors working on Illinois projects. With a talented, diverse pipeline of individuals, who are registered with the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Apprenticeship, have industry-related credentials from pre-apprenticeship programs or are seeking sponsorship, The Partnership links career candidates with contractors on small and large construction projects and assists with placement onto projects affiliated with 27 construction trade unions.
About Our Initiatives
Chicago Works: Chicago Works is Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot’s five-year capital plan that will invest in communities through infrastructure. To help City residents obtain jobs and take advantage of the opportunities created by Chicago Works, the City of Chicago teamed up with The Partnership to fill positions created by City investments by working directly with contractors to identify job candidates. The City and Partnership have developed services to connect contractors and job seekers who live in Chicago.
Construction Works: ConstructionWorks Powered by the Illinois Tollway and administered by The Partnership is a free program designed to link job seekers with opportunities for rewarding careers in Illinois’ high-demand transportation-related construction industry. The Partnership has created services to connect contractors and job seekers who live in Chicago.
Jackson Park Transportation Improvements: The City of Chicago, through the Department of Planning and Development ) and CDOT, is working on several roadway changes and transportation improvement projects in Chicago’s Jackson Park that will support the Obama Presidential Center and the Chicago Park District’s South Lakefront Framework Plan. CDOT has partnered with The Partnership to connect local residents with construction jobs for the project. If you would like to apply for these hiring opportunities, please complete the form here.
The Public Building Commission of Chicago (PBC): The Public Building Commission of Chicago (PBC) and the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership (The Partnership) has joined forces to spur greater minority and women participation in construction jobs and vocational training in the City of Chicago and the greater Cook County area. By working together, the PBC and The Partnership will be positioned to recruit and recommend minorities and women job seekers, who have traditionally been excluded from unionized career opportunities, to contractors on PBC’s construction or renovation projects. In addition, The Partnership will assist career seekers with placement into the twenty-seven trade unions and the necessary vocational training/resources to connect construction employers to a skilled talent pipeline. If you would like to apply for these hiring opportunities, please complete the form here.