Make A Donation
Thank you for your support. Your donation helps JOTF to eliminate educational and employment barriers for low-wage workers by transforming the systems and policies that create and perpetuate those barriers. Together, we are making a difference.
The Job Opportunities Task Force (JOTF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to develop and advocate policies and programs to increase the skills, job opportunities, and incomes of low-skill, low-income workers and job seekers. We utilize three strategies to achieve our mission: career skills instruction that is combined with support services and job placement, public policy development and advocacy, and research and public education to help develop and promote evidence-based recommendations for positive change. We believe that workforce development can be effectively integrated with economic development to create a Baltimore that is inclusive and provides opportunities for everyone.
Program Development
The core of JOTF’s program development work is the operation of the BetterU Construction Training Program. BetterU is a 14-week, 87-hour pre-apprenticeship construction training program in the following trades: carpentry, electrical and plumbing. BetterU has created career pathways for numerous Baltimore City residents. These career pathways include jobs that pay sustainable wages.
Public Policy Advocacy
From the streets of our diverse neighborhoods to the halls of Annapolis, JOTF advocates for public policies that seek to eliminate educational and employment barriers, and increase access to skills, job opportunities and higher wages for working families. From urging increased investment in job skills training, access to paid sick days for over 400,000 low-wage workers in Maryland, eliminating the arrest/conviction question from both college and job applications (Ban the Box), eliminating barriers to occupational licensing, reducing transportation barriers that make it difficult to obtain and keep a job, and reducing the impact of having a criminal record on the ability of individuals to secure employment, JOTF remains a steadfast advocacy for policies that remove barriers and create employment opportunities for low-wage low-skill workers.
Research and Public Education
JOTF’s research highlights the implications of certain policies and practices on Maryland workers struggling to make ends meet. Our work includes research on the impact of state and federal laws and funding on workforce development, the Baltimore City labor market, and the impact of social and economic changes on the employment prospects of workers and job seekers in Baltimore and the region. This research is used to educate the public and lawmakers, and shape our legislative agenda.
THERE ARE SO MANY WAYS YOU CAN HELP OUR MISSION
We know that you have many choices when it comes to charitable giving. Investing your dollars in JOTF will benefit Maryland’s low-wage low-skill workers by eliminating barriers and preparing them for a future of stable, sustainable employment.
