Last week, the Texas Association of Business (TAB) Foundation, in collaboration with JPMorganChase, hosted an important event in Austin, “Investing in Workforce Solutions to Power Economic Growth Across Texas.” The event featured a fireside chat between myself and Tim Berry, Global Head of Corporate Responsibility at JPMorganChase, followed by a roundtable discussion with leaders from the public and private sectors. Local stakeholders including Austin Community College and United Way for Greater Austin joined the discussion to explore how key strategies can help build a stronger, more resilient workforce in the state.
Throughout the evening, participants discussed the intersection of higher education, second chance hiring, and childcare access, all of which are vital workforce solutions that expand Texas' talent pool and help meet the demands of the future job market.
In the fireside chat, I spoke with Tim about Texas’ world-renowned business climate, and how businesses and the public sector can collaborate to prepare the workforce for the future. One primary focus was House Bill 8 (HB 8), which created an outcome-based funding model for Texas community colleges.
Tim Berry emphasized the importance of aligning educational outcomes with workforce needs:
“Texas has a huge advantage in that it sees the problem and it is actually built to act on the problem. The fact that HB 8 passed with bipartisan support, the fact that Texas is focused on building an education curriculum that leads directly to a career outcome, and is holding schools accountable to how effectively they do that – from a competitive standpoint, that puts Texas ahead of many other states. It’s pretty amazing from a public policy standpoint.”
Tim Berry, Global Head of Corporate Responsibility at JPMorganChase, and Glenn Hamer, President & CEO of TAB.
Following the fireside chat, TAB Chairman Massey Villarreal kicked off a roundtable discussion delved deeper into specific areas critical to workforce development, starting with the need for skills-based education:
“We continue to prove that Texas is a great place, but without the education component, without having a workforce, as we travel around the world talking to companies, we have to be able to say: we can deliver a workforce.”
Garrett Groves, Vice Chancellor of Strategic Initiatives at Austin Community College (ACC), highlighted the impact of the college’s “free tuition” program on access to higher education and workforce preparedness. He also stressed the importance of public-private partnerships in addressing workforce gaps, pointing to ACC’s partnership with the Austin Infrastructure Academy as an example of how cross-sector collaboration can deliver real-world skills to students.
“What’s wonderful about the Texas workforce system, and the Texas community college system, is that we work very well together. We have 28 workforce boards, 50 community college systems – we’re up to the task.”
Another major theme was second chance hiring, a crucial strategy for reducing barriers to employment. In 2021, TAB launched the Texas Second Chance Employers Coalition, which aims to mobilize businesses in supporting second chance hiring practices. Employers are overlooking a talented pool of potential employees, which is damaging the economy substantially. In fact, it’s estimated by JPMorganChase that the U.S. economy loses up to $87 billion annually due to unemployment or underemployment of people with records.
Dave Emerick, Executive Director of State Government Relations for JPMorgan Chase and Chair of TABF, emphasized that expanding employment opportunities not only helps those with records but also benefits the economy by tapping into an underutilized talent pool as the demand in the job market continues to increase:
“We were one of the first creators of the Second Chance Business Coalition, and I’m proud to say, too, that here in Texas – through TAB – we created a Texas Second Chance Employers coalition, and that’s really helped educate employers in Texas about what they can do to help engage people who have been justice impacted. We’re trying to find ways to help lower the barriers to employment, get people in the door with jobs that have career pathways that have good benefits and career mobility, so that they can be proud of where they work.”
Catherine McHorse, Coalition Manager at United Way for Greater Austin, shared how access to affordable, flexible access to childcare can remove one of the most significant barriers to employment for working parents. She discussed trends in employer benefit programs and innovative approaches to childcare, such as offering services outside traditional business hours to accommodate non-standard work schedules:
“Another area to really think about is where and when families need childcare. In Travis County, we need to have 10,000 more employees to address our mobility and infrastructure jobs, growing demand on health care and first responders, and all of these folks need a workforce that work in the early mornings and the evenings, and weekends – not during the 9 to 5 traditional hours. When we look at the market survey in Texas of when childcare is available, only 4 percent of the programs surveyed across the state have childcare during those hours, and it was 0 percent in Travis County. Some of that is due to our lack of childcare workforce.”
JPMorganChase Executive Director of State Government Relations and TAB Foundation Chair Dave Emerick speaks on a panel alongside TAB Chairman Massey Villarreal, Austin Community College’s Garrett Groves, and United Way for Greater Austin’s Catherine McHorse.
As Texas businesses look to the future, discussions like these underscore the need for holistic workforce solutions that address not only skills and education but also the support systems that allow employees to succeed in the workplace. Whether through public-private partnerships in education, initiatives like second chance hiring, or investments in childcare, these strategies will be crucial in ensuring that Texas' workforce remains competitive and well-prepared for the challenges of tomorrow.
This event marked another step forward in the ongoing collaboration between TAB, JPMorganChase, and local stakeholders in developing the workforce solutions needed to drive sustainable economic growth across Texas.
- Glenn Hamer, President & CEO, Texas Association of Business
###
Comments