Pivot: How the Wildfires are Changing the LA Region

Pam Sornson, JD on February 18, 2025

Just as the COVID-19 pandemic reordered the world, so will the LA fires upend Los Angeles and its industrial base. The flames themselves destroyed great swaths of public and privately owned real estate, which may or may not be rebuilt. Beyond the burn zones, smoke and wind influences in far-flung agricultural communities have damaged crops; the economic value of those losses is yet to be determined. Further, many regional supply chains and industrial systems that have survived the fires may experience higher demand for goods and services without the means to respond directly to those requests.

In short, the damage caused by the fires impacts more than just the property owners who’ve lost their homes and businesses. Damages have also been suffered by the city, the county, and all of the Southern California region. Governments, industrial leaders, and companies must now assess where the failures and damages occurred and determine whether to mend or repair them or simply rebuild anew.

Immediate Known Losses. Longterm Uncertainties.

Real Property Losses

The immediate real property loss estimates caused by the fires encompass a myriad of real estate assets:

• Approximately 16,000 homes and business buildings were destroyed.
• The median value of each of these destroyed properties is estimated at $2.09 million.
• Multiplying that figure by a ratio of 2.2, the ‘insured capital’ value (as determined by insurance figures derived from previous fire disasters) puts the estimated aggregate real property loss in the region at ~$74 billion.

These figures apply solely to the buildings that were destroyed during the crisis and may not reflect the total loss to property owners. In some cases, insurance values may be lower or homeowners may have eschewed insurance altogether. In other cases, insurance companies may have dropped coverage for properties in these areas due to heightened risk of loss or damage by any cause, leaving owners with no financial recourse at all. In either of those instances, home and property owners may not collect the full value of their losses.

Ancillary Losses

Other figures suggest a more overarching ‘loss map,’ one that includes the fire’s impact on industrial and public resources, as well as on the community’s health.

Agriculture

California is the country’s top agricultural producer, accounting for as much as 11% of the nation’s aggregate annual output. However, on a smaller scale in terms of actual product, the LA region accounts for a larger percentage of the national food supply, depending on the crop:

• It annually delivers 27% of the country’s fruit supply, including citrus, apples, etc.
• It also provides 24% of the nation’s vegetable production, and
• almost 20% (19%) of the nuts grown in the U.S.

The nine regional counties responsible for the annual and food cash infusions into national coffers are also the most affected by the fires. Los Angeles, Monterey, Kern, Orange, San Bernardino, Riverside, Ventura, Santa Barbara, and San Luis Obispo counties have all experienced adverse effects from the disaster, either directly by fire or indirectly by smoke or ash or both. Smoke from the flames has tainted thousands of acres of agricultural land in the nine most affected counties, devastating this year’s yield. At the same time, ash falling across fields and acreage is tainting the soil, which will affect crop quality for at least another year or more.

In addition to the loss of agricultural resources, many of the ~86,000 agricultural workers are also impacted as their livelihoods literally ‘go up in smoke.’ The aggregate contribution to California’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of both agricultural labor and crop production is $10.8 Billion, plus another $9.2 billion contributed by related supply chain industries. The abrupt cessation of agricultural industry activities will significantly impact the state’s budget as a whole.

Supply Chains

Fortunately, no major industrial warehouses were destroyed by the wildfires, although some lost power for a period to reduce the risk of igniting more. However, the extent of the loss of physical and real property suggests that the supply chains that fill those warehouses will suffer significant strains as communities begin their rebuilding processes. And those strains may appear sooner rather than later as communities work to resume their lives amidst the ruins:

• Retail stores (grocery, apparel, home goods) may experience excessive runs on their wares as displaced populations travel in search of resources they’d lost in the fires.
• Building supply stores will almost certainly have to expand their volume of goods as neighborhoods begin the actual rebuilding process.
• Logistics suppliers will also experience higher than usual call volumes as both individuals and companies reach out to replace supplies and goods that were either lost or have already been snapped up.

These phenomena will require attention and resources as the Southern California region moves toward recovery.

Public Health

An additional collateral impact on the LA region caused by the wildfires is that of smoke on the human body. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) tracks how various populations are affected by wildfire smoke and uses the data to measure the impacts on health rates in affected communities. The EPA uses an Air Quality Index (AQI) to determine the relative quality of the nation’s air and associates those data with human health impacts and outcomes. According to their research, while inhaling wildfire smoke is bad for everyone, some populations will suffer more – and longer – after being exposed to toxins like those recently released in LA County:

• The wildfire smoke is more challenging for younger and older people. Children can be particularly sensitive; their bodies are inherently more vulnerable and they are often outdoors much more than grown-ups.
• Older adults (middle-aged and beyond) also tend to suffer more significantly from smoke inhalation. Often, there are pre-existing conditions that impair lung and heart functions, both of which absorb much of the brunt of the smoke damage.
• Sick people are often made more sick when exposed to toxic smoke and fumes. Those with cardiovascular conditions such as high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, and cerebrovascular conditions frequently experience additional symptoms when inhaling smoke-tainted air, such as heart palpitations, lightheadedness, and shortness of breath.

Pregnant women, outdoor workers, and those of lower socioeconomic standings are also among individual groups that suffer more egregious injuries when exposed to toxic environmental conditions like wildfire smoke.

It’s been just a few weeks since the fires were contained, and, in many cases, assessments for damages haven’t yet begun. As they commence, they will certainly reveal not just immediate concerns but also circumstances that will have a more prolonged, more profound impact on the greater community. As the region moves into the ‘assess and address’ phase, that emerging data will reveal just how much the fires cost directly, in terms of actual losses, and will cost in terms of rebuilding and recovery expenses.

 

Unlikely Heroes: Incarcerated LA Fire Responders Rise Above Barriers

Pam Sornson, JD on February 4, 2025

Wildfires are very, very expensive. Billions of dollars in damages are lost each year (much of which is borne by insurance companies and their insureds) as well as additional billions of dollars expended to suppress (prevent) and fight (quell and extinguish) them. The recent Los Angeles fires represent a worst-case scenario, where extremely high winds and adverse weather conditions coupled with years of drought generated levels of urban devastation that have not been seen before.

For a remarkable contingent of firefighters, however, the catastrophe was also a truly unique opportunity to do better for themselves. California’s prison inmate firefighters volunteer to put their lives on the line for the very community that incarcerates them. By doing so, they have the opportunity to rise above their situation, contribute positively to their community, and create a chance for a better future for themselves and their families.

California’s Wildfire Statistics

Perhaps not surprisingly, California experiences more, bigger, and costlier wildfires than any other U.S. state (with the word ‘wildfire’ distinguishing the difference between a fire in remote, rural, and forested areas versus fires that occur within urban areas). According to the Insurance Information Institute, of the top ten most expensive wildfires in the United States, nine occurred in California over the past eight years (Colorado’s 2021 Marshall Fire is the only outlier). In terms of most destructive wildfires (most number of acres burned), the Palisades and Eaton fires have already notched up to numbers three (20,438) and four (13,690) on the list, topped only by the Camp Fire of 2018 (153,336), and the Tubbs Fire of 2017 (36,807). These disasters amass a series of staggering losses, from lives to property to memories and histories. Early estimates of the economic losses caused by LA’s recent conflagrations range from $40B to as much as $250B. When final costs and losses are tallied, it is anticipated by some that the Los Angeles wildfires of 2025 will be the most costly disaster ever in the country’s recent history.

California’s Firefighting Resources

Suppression Activities

In addition to the losses caused by fire, other fire management services and activities to prevent fires (‘fire suppression‘ costs) also tack on millions of dollars to state budgets each year. The cost of fire suppression activities in California have been expanding significantly over the past ~four decades:

• Between 1980 and 1985, annual costs to prevent wildfires totaled ~$14M.
• Between 2015 and 2020, that annual figure had grown to ~$685M.
• An estimate for the exact preventative costs for the period between 2020 and 2025 comes to ~$868M, although that preliminary figure has yet to be fully quantified. According to CalMatters, California spent $3.7 billion in fire mitigation costs just in fiscal years 2021 and 2022.

Regardless of the volume and value of suppression investments, however, wildfires still continue to ignite and consume thousands of acres of land and millions of dollars of property every year.

Equipment

The cost of firefighting equipment is also high. Because of the high risk of injury or death for firefighters, their tools and machinery are often state-of-the-art and expensive to purchase and maintain. Thousands of hand tools must be ready to go at a moment’s notice, while other services, such as tanker planes, land-based trucks, and earth movers must be fully stocked and ready to roll at the first sign of smoke. For example, the best-in-class CL-415 water scooper aircraft, one of the best tools for reducing fires in remote areas, costs $13,500 an hour to deploy.

Up through 2024, California invested $2.5 billion in its arsenal of firefighting tools, and Governor Newsom’s 2025 budget adds another $1.5 billion over the next few years.

Human

The cost of maintaining and deploying human firefighters has also risen, and California has increased its standing population of firefighters from 5,829 to 10,741 since 2018. A 2024 $2 billion investment by the state allows for shorter workweeks for all firefighters while adding 2,400 more bodies to the corps.

In addition to its state-based firefighting contingent, other organizations have contributed human resources to engage with and defeat the flames:

• 2,500 California Army and Air National Guard members were on-site in LA during the fires, while
• An additional 500 Marines from San Diego County’s Camp Pendleton were on stand-by (as of January 14) to deploy ten active-duty Navy helicopters over the affected communities.

And California’s prison system has also stepped up to assist in fighting the conflagration. Close to 1,750 incarcerated people were deployed as firefighters during the crisis, voluntarily providing vital services to their community despite their criminal histories.

California’s Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation runs a volunteer firefighter program that trains imprisoned inmates to perform specific firefighting duties in conjunction with professional fire management operations. While some may squawk at the low pay they receive (as little as $10 per day), the opportunity is one of a lifetime for many of the inmates.

Program courses happen in the prison, where inmates and parolees learn to clear brush and create firelines using heavy equipment. They don’t use fire hoses, nor do they run engines or go into buildings. Instead, these workers develop the breaks between burning and nonburning areas, using hand tools and brute strength to clear away the debris and vegetation that pose ignition threats. Their incentives to join the corps are significant:

• While their training occurs within prison walls, they live at an open camp work near the fire.
• Meals are larger and have better nutritional value than those inside prison walls, and
• weight and athletic equipment help them train and strengthen before they enter the fray.
• They work a 24-hour shift and then receive a 24-hour rest day, which is just the same as for all firefighters.

Once the fire is contained and their work is done, the incentives continue:

• They can earn ‘time served’ credits for their efforts, which reduces their overall time behind bars.
• Their criminal history can be expunged after they’ve been released, which allows them to find new work after incarceration that they would not have qualified for otherwise.
• After release, they can attend additional firefighter training at the Ventura Training Center to become eligible for work with the U.S. Forest Service.

Many of the program’s participants say it changed their lives, giving them purpose, direction, and ambition for a better future. For many, the opportunity for a fresh start post-prison is unmatched, and they leap at the chance to make a new start when they exit the system.

So, while the fires cause untold millions of dollars in damage and loss, the opportunity for these brave individuals to fight them while rehabilitating their own lives is priceless. That’s one small bright light in an otherwise dark and dangerous fire-consumed world.

Still Relevant: Employment and Workplace Trends for 2025

Pam Sornson, JD on January 28, 2025

This article was written before the fires erupted. At that time, its messages were more philosophical; ‘climate change’ as a social concern was more theoretical than real. Now, as its consequences devastate the LA region, these social concerns rise in prominence, especially as the region contemplates its response to its new environmental reality. Accordingly, it appears that these trends will remain operative – and perhaps take on even more significance – for the foreseeable future and will definitely be influencing the recovery processes adopted across Southern California as it moves forward through and beyond the destruction.

Despite significant alterations in global economic activities (caused by wars, weather disasters, political maneuvering, etc.), well-defined ‘trends’ still drive businesses and industries. Further, while ongoing interruptions may also affect these trends, their impetus remains influential on how, why, when, and where people get their work done. Looking into 2025, these three factors will be notably present in consumer, industry, and economic evolutions.

The ‘Sustainable’ Business

Growing environmental concerns continue to stimulate changes in how companies do their business and approach their customers. Recent research indicates that consumer preferences play a critical role in how organizations elect to direct their resources, especially companies that produce consumer packaged goods (CPG). The sale of these food and beverage products, cosmetics, cleaning and home maintenance wares, and similar personal and household items accounts for over $14 trillion annually in the U.S., which adds up to approximately two-thirds of the American Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Those transactions carry immense economic clout, and enterprises that cater to this consumer segment have learned that being responsive to their target market across all factors, including sustainability, is a sure way to win a larger share of it.    

‘Sustainability’ encompasses three tenets of action:

  • ‘Environmental sustainability’ pursues the principle that today’s careful and responsible maintenance of natural resources (land, water, air, etc.) should preserve and conserve them for access and use by future generations. Reducing waste, reusing materials and resources, and limiting carbon emissions all contribute to a cleaner planet and a happier consumer base.  
  • ‘Social sustainability’ is also considered to be part of a sustainable enterprise. Businesses that advertise their socially adept activities boast about workplace and organizational health and safety practices, inclusive policies that offer equal and fair opportunities to all constituents (staff and customers), and an awareness of the need for a work-life balance for their workforce.
  • ‘Economic sustainability’ is achieved when companies master their social and environmental responsibilities and can authentically report that their long-term plans and actions don’t negatively impact their industry, community, or consumer base.

Globally, these three forms of ‘community care’ have already driven immense changes in the world’s trade, industry, and social sectors, and many organizations are using the concepts to build their future. However, their focus has changed: instead of strategizing what they need to do to be sustainably successful, they are now seeking to leverage their sustainability activities to improve the economic value of their products and services. As the sustainability aspect of doing business gains more traction, more companies will be asking the second question in order to attract and retain a growing consumer base.

 

The ‘Purposeful’ Brand

As an adjunct to sustainability, both businesses and consumers are measuring how companies act in relation to social and cultural realities as an indicator of their value to the community. ‘Brand activism‘ refers to the ‘social stance’ a particular organization takes with regard to socially sensitive topics, such as racial equity, climate change, and fair access to resources. A recent study by Deloitte revealed that one in five shoppers (19%) intentionally purchased from sellers that proclaimed their positive brand purposes and activities, while over one in four (26%) elected not to buy from organizations whose brands displayed negative behaviors in relation to social concerns. In fact, four of five study respondents (79%) said they were very aware of how their favorite merchants behaved in the world and that those realities actively escalated their perception of the enterprise as a high-quality supplier. On the other hand, one in three (31%) respondents indicated that negative behaviors exhibited by their selected merchants reduced their opinions of – and their willingness to buy from – those companies.    

Finally, of all the social concerns that are evident in today’s fraught corporate and industrial world, four in five survey respondents (81%) reported that climate change was the most significant to them. One company went all-out in redefining itself as a responsible corporate actor in today’s global economy: Unilever. After crafting its now signature line of ‘Sustainable Living Brands,’ the conglomerate saw its included brands grow in the next year by as much as 69% over the progress of its non-affiliated brands.  

 

The Hybrid Employment Opportunity

The COVID-19 pandemic revealed clearly that employee effort provided high corporate value regardless of the worker’s location. Computer programs were modified to provide enhanced digital security for the ‘distributed’ workforce, which, in turn, could craft a workday that best suited its personal needs and preferences. The shift away from a single, corporate-mandated workplace resulted in increased productivity for the company and enhanced job satisfaction for the employee – truly a win-win situation. ‘Going to work’ now means turning one’s attention toward a corporate ‘ecosystem’ comprised of local, on-site, and remote workers who converse and collaborate through digital channels.   

Today’s hybrid work model is fluid depending on the goals of the company, the needs of its particular workforce, and its customers’ demands.

  • Companies that facilitate a flexible workplace for their employees enjoy more productivity and better returns on their workforce investments. The practice also helps to retain top talent; one survey indicated that almost half (42%) of reporting respondents said they would leave their current employment if the remote work opportunity were discontinued.
  • Employees typically elect their personal preference for their work site, which may be at the formal office, in a home office, on the road, or even a combination of all three. These workers enjoy more flexibility in their work life and are able to schedule work requirements around family and other responsibilities.
  • Consumers respond positively to the hybrid work model because, to them, it represents the company’s respect for its workforce. This ’employee-centric’ mindset suggests a more evolved form of corporate leadership, which is attractive to populations that aren’t impressed by legacy work systems and rigid rule sets.  

 

Despite the current unrest around the world, these and other workplace trends will maintain their impact as the global economy wrestles with upheaval and uncertainty across many of its sectors. In many cases, the trends themselves may prove to be the saving grace for workers, their employers, and the consumers who rely on their good products – and good works.  

PCC and the Los Angeles Wildfires

Pam Sornson, JD on January 21, 2025

Some of our readers may not know that Pasadena City College (PCC) sits just a few miles from the southern evacuation perimeter of the Eaton fire. Our campus has seen firsthand the devastation of this fire and the chaos it has created in our very tight-knit community. Our hearts go out to our neighbors, colleagues, friends, and family affected by this circumstance. PCC will do all that it can to aid its community as it works through this crisis and begins its healing process.

In this edition of the Pulse, we are sharing some of the resources and responses to the fires that have emerged in the last week. Health services, housing, transportation, and even pet care are all critical concerns for the thousands of Los Angeles residents affected by the blazes. The agencies that offer these and other critical services are available and coordinating support opportunities to any Angelino affected by the infernos.

PCC-Centered Resources

Pasadena City College is located at the heart of the wildfire resource network and is hosting several agencies that are providing support and resources for fire victims and survivors. If you have suffered losses due to the fires, these entities may have the resources you’ll need to move forward. You can contribute to the PCC Community Relief Fund if you’d like to help those in need because of the fires.

Free Childcare

First responders, essential workers, and Impacted families with eligible children can find free emergency childcare on the PCC campus through the services of the YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles. The facility is located at Harbeson Hall (enter on the backside of the L Building that faces Colorado Boulevard) and can take in children four years, nine months or older, and be in grades TK through 8th. The general community can go here to enroll; PCC Parents can enroll through this link.

Mental Health Support

The Circadian (found on campus in CC Building, Room 130) is hosting mental health support services on Friday, January 17 from noon to 2:30 pm. Find more information here.

Small Business Support – PCC Small Business Development Center and Women’s Business Center

The Small Business Administration is providing a Disaster Loan Outreach Center for small companies, private non-profits, and other organizations that have sustained economic losses due to the fires. Located on the PCC campus in the Continuing Education Center Bungalow – B4, the entity is now open Mondays through Fridays, 9 am – 6 pm, and Saturdays, 9 am 4 pm.

The LA SBDC has also prepared this comprehensive Disaster Response Guide that links to many response efforts throughout the region and will be updated regularly as needed.

As well, keep an eye on the PCC Women’s Business Center, which tailors its support service to businesses owned and operated by women.

Help Us Identify Unmet Needs

The PCC community – students, faculty, staff, families, and neighbors – can help the school identify as-yet-unidentified needs by submitting a PCC Fire Recovery Needs Assessment Form. Input received directly from those who the crisis has impacted will help us to better serve them and those who will follow in their footsteps.

Additionally, stay informed of what’s happening and what you can do about it by tracking available and evolving resources and staying current on emerging situations. Sign up for RAVE to receive updates and alerts on what’s happening at PCC.

 

LA County Wildfire Response Resources

LA County has leveraged many resource services in response to the fires, as almost 92,000 of its residents are currently under mandatory evacuation orders, and another 89,000 have been warned to prepare to leave their homes. These agencies are offering support:

For shelter and Lodging:

• 211 LA has joined with Airbnb to provide emergency temporary shelter for displaced LA residents. To start that process, complete this form.
• The LA Homeless Services Authority advises that several county agencies are offering help to people seeking shelter, including:

o Red Cross Los Angeles,
o the local hotel association, and
o the YMCA of Metropolitan LA, among many others.

Search here for those and additional services offered by local and county companies and businesses.

Addition County Resources:

Unique situations may need other support. Check out this directory to find these and other agencies that may be able to help you:

• Los Angeles County Department of Aging and Disabilities
• Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control
• Los Angeles County Department of Assessor’s Office
• Los Angeles County Department of Child Support Services
• Los Angeles County Department of Consumer and Business Affairs
• Los Angeles County Department of Economic Opportunity
• Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health

 

California State Wildfire Response Resources

Meanwhile, in California, Governor Gavin Newsom has launched a new website, CA.gov/LAfires, that offers resources at the state level for damages and losses caused by these catastrophes. Here, you can find other available resources, as well as locally situated support options, including:

• evolving fire maps,
• employment and unemployment benefits,
• tips and alerts for developing concerns, and
• possible tax relief options.

In the LA area, a variety of service organizations have emerged to respond immediately to the needs of survivors of the fires. For those who have lost housing, the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) has opened two Disaster Recovery Centers in Los Angeles County. As of Tuesday, January 14, these shelters and services are available to victims of the fires

• The UCLA Disaster Recovery Center is located at 10850 West Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90064.
• The Pasadena Disaster Recovery Center is located at Pasadena City College in the Community Education Center, 3035 E. Foothill Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91107.

Both recovery centers are open Monday through Sunday from 9 AM to 8 PM. Providing support service services through the centers are California’s:

• Department of Motor Vehicles,
• Department of Social Services,
• Franchise Tax Board,
• Employment Development Department,
• Contractor Estate License Board,
• Department of Insurance,
• Department of Tax and Fee Administration,
• Department of Veterans Affairs,
• Department of Public Health, and
• Department of Housing and Community Development.

If seeking services at either Disaster Recovery Center, be sure to bring with you:

• the address of the damaged primary residence,
• your current phone number and mailing address,
• your bank account information, and
• your insurance coverage information.

Other resources available through California’s government can be found at ca.gov/LAfires/. A list of resources can be downloaded in both English and Spanish to help victims of the fire find needed resources, including:

• Advanced financial assistance,
• Funds for repair or replacement of a damaged home,
• Disaster-related legal services,
• Disaster-related employment assistance,
• Housing and rental assistance,
• And any other needs not listed.

Additionally, victims can find assistance finding shelter and filing insurance claims, and there is a helpful list of tips for wildfire claimants that may prove vitally important.

Federal Resources

President Joe Biden’s declaration that the LA fires constitute a ‘Major Disaster‘ makes victims and survivors of those fires eligible for federal programs based on the unique types and extent of damage they suffered. To apply for federal assistance from FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, follow these procedures:

  • Click on DisasterAssistance.gov/DAC-RI/assessment,‘ and hit the ‘apply’ button on the website page. Your responses to those questions will determine whether your emergency qualifies for federal aid.
  • Once your qualification is established, create an account on login.gov to establish your presence with the FEMA agency.
  • Be prepared to provide necessary data to the agency, including:
    •  your home, mailing, and email addresses
    • your phone number;
    • your Social Security number;
    • your immigration or citizenship status, if applicable,
    • your banking information, and
    • your insurance information.
  • Enter the data into the application form and describe the circumstances of your particular emergency. Add as much data as possible, but know that you can amend your application later as new information becomes available.
  • Once you’ve created the application, save it to your computer and be sure to capture your application identification number. FEMA agency will ask for that number every time they talk to you.

When received, FEMA will review your application and contact you if they need more information. You can also log back in at any time to check your status and to determine if there’s anything else you need to provide. Once you do qualify, FEMA will send you a payment using the method you provided.

If you’ve lost your business or your company has been adversely affected, you can seek disaster assistance from the Federal Small Business Administration (SBA). For the California wildfires, the SBA is providing financial aid to cover several types of damage and injuries. Loans available from the SBA include:

  •  Home loans for homeowners or renters to repair or replace disaster damage with damaged l estate and personal property, including cars.
  • Economic Loans to cover financial injuries:
  • Disaster loans from the SBA provide working capital to help businesses, agricultural, cooperative, aquaculture agencies, and most private nonprofit organizations meet their ordinary and necessary obligations.
  • Physical disaster loans are available to businesses to repair or replace corporate property, including real estate, supplies, machinery, inventory, and equipment.

All sized agencies are eligible for the support, including private nonprofit organizations, churches, private universities, charities, etc. For more information about federal government disaster support services, go to fema.gov/disaster/4856.

The fires and aftermath will fundamentally alter California, Los Angeles City and County, and the City of Pasadena. PCC is a witness to what’s transpired to date and will be working with its neighbors and colleagues as our community quells the immediate threats and looks forward to building a stronger, more resilient future.

California’s Employment Laws are Changing in 2025

Pam Sornson, JD on January 7, 2025

Three elements are fundamental to the overarching concept of ‘workforce development’: the employer, the employee, and the employment itself. Numerous sets of rules and regulations govern the activities of each separate element, and some cover aspects of all three. These rule sets are established by the company, the industry, and the government, each of which has its own mandate as to why things must be done in those prescribed ways. Rules set by governments – laws – apply to all relevant entities within their jurisdictions, and those regulations are designed primarily to keep the applicable person/organization and their/its community safe from harm:  

  • Laws mandating safety practices keep workers, their bosses, and their customers safe.
  • Laws governing wages, time off, social insurance, etc., ensure that most workers have the time and money needed to achieve their daily and long-term goals.
  • Laws governing workspaces and facilities ensure that anyone entering them will be safe, regardless of their reason for being there.

As times change and industries and societies shift, the workspace rules also change. In 2025, California’s workers, employers, and industries will be managing some significant changes in the way they work and how their workplace is managed.

 

New Laws Impact 2025 EWD Efforts

For Employers:

Employers will have some adjusting to do to get in compliance with incoming 2025 California legislation, with several new mandates coming into force. These few are notable:

  • The State’s minimum wage (MW) is rising to $16.50 per hour across the board while some cities and regions are moving it even higher. In San Diego, workers will now be earning $17.25 per hour; in San Jose, that value rises to $17.95. Note also that a separate initiative, Proposition 32, sought to raise the MW to $17.00 per hour in companies with 25 or fewer employees and to $18.00 in organizations with 26 or more workers. While that effort failed, the vote was split at 50.8% against and 49.2% in favor, suggesting that the opportunity might arise again.
  • New causes of action for harassment can arise when two or more offensive or discriminatory behaviors occur at the same time. The new term is ‘intersectionality,’ as that is defined in Senate Bill (SB) 1137, Civil Code section 51, and Government Code section 12926, and it refers to when a person experiences biased behavior based on two or more forms of harassment. A Hispanic man, for example, might have claims rising from harassment based on both his ethnicity (Hispanic) and his gender (male).
  • “Captive Audience” meetings are now banned in all California workplaces, too. These gatherings became ‘mandatory attendance’ by corporate decree when certain topics were on the table, specifically politics, union representation, and religious beliefs. The new “California Worker Freedom from Employer Intimidation Act” (SB-399) prohibits employers from requiring employees to attend meetings that push particular political or religious perspectives or that discourage unionization discussions. Retaliating against workers who refuse to attend these meetings is also now legislatively banned, and any employee choosing to work instead of participating in the chats must be paid their ‘normal rate of compensation.’   

 

For Employees     

Workers will also have new circumstances to navigate in the new year:

  • Workers who need access to Paid Sick Leave benefits will have them expanded to cover absences caused by “qualifying acts of violence” (QAV). SB 616 covers QAVs suffered by both the worker and their victimized family members and includes injuries and trauma caused by domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking behaviors, and other acts that threaten or cause bodily harm to an individual. SB 616 and its partner Assembly Bill 2499 (AB 2499) modify Government Code section 12945.8 to ensure that employers with 25 or more workers provide the time off workers need to recover from their injuries and that they aren’t retaliated or discriminated against because they were – or their family member was – victimized by a QAV.
  • Workers will also have more protected time off than before when AB 2123 takes effect. That Bill amends  Unemployment Insurance Code section 3303.1 to prohibit the requirement that workers seeking family temporary disability insurance benefits take up to two weeks of earned but not used vacation leave prior to obtaining their access to the separate time off option. Employees will no longer have to consume their earned ‘vacation’ time when they need time off to manage disabling family circumstances.  
  • Independent contractors have new rights protecting them, too, with the enactment of the Freelance Worker Protection Act (FMPA). This new law gives freelancers who provide ‘professional services’ (human resources administration, marketing, grant writing, etc.) ‘basic worker protections’ against exploitation by requiring those who hire them to:
    • put the agreement in writing,
    • include both party’s names and addresses,
    • clearly define the scope of work expected,
    • clarify how compensation will be made and paid, and
    • establish the timeframe in which payment will be made.
  • Not least significant to many workers is the requirement that employers post their mandates regarding whistleblower laws in a prominent place. California’s ‘WhistleBlower‘ model poster clearly states who the law is intended to protect, how those protections operate within the organization, defines the elements of the ‘act‘ of alerting officials to questionable practices by employers, and provides contact information when reports could or should be made. Should that need arise, employees will now have easy access to this information.  
  • Rising demand for support from the State’s disability insurance program (SDI) will also impact workers in the form of a slightly higher tax to cover those costs. Withheld taxes for the SDI fund will cover increases in allowances for workers who must take time off because of injuries to them or to care for injured or sick family members.  

 

As the new year launches, employees and their employers will be changing their customary routines to reflect these changes in California’s employment laws. Hopefully, the changes will improve not just employee morale but employer and enterprise success as well.

CA Invests in Apprenticeships in 2025

Pam Sornson, JD on December 17, 2024

There are many ways to build a workforce. In addition to structured educational programs, internships, and apprenticeships are also essential and valuable methods for finetuning workers to deliver precisely the right services and skills. In 2025, California’s government is investing $24.7 million in 65 different apprenticeship programs in the State’s most critical industries, giving both those companies and their future workforce a brighter, more financially stable future.

California’s Apprenticeship Innovation Funding (AIF) Program

In 2022, California introduced this new financial resource to increase its apprenticeship offerings across its many industries. In conjunction with the State’s Interagency Advisory Committee on Apprenticeships, the AIF assists organizations to scale and sustain their apprenticeship efforts.

Beginning in 2022, California allocated $135M towards the development and growth of these programs and has tasked the Departments of Industrial Relations (DIR) and its Division of Apprenticeship Standards (DAS) with their administration. In FY 2023-2024, $75M was allocated for the purpose and the Governor has announced that another $24.7M is available for FY 2024-2025. These ‘earn-and-learn’ pathways allow novice workers to learn the skills they need to sustain long-term employment and earn money while on the (training) job. The 2025 allocation is expected to support over 8,200 new positions, paying an average of almost $32.00 per hour.

Notably, the newly funded apprenticeships pop up across several industrial spheres, which have already been designated as key sectors for sustaining the State’s economic foundation, such as advanced manufacturing, education, healthcare, transportation, business services, and the ‘public sector.’

More Money = Bigger Strategy

Additionally, in November 2024, Governor Newsom introduced a draft of a new framework designed to guide the State’s workforce and apprenticeship investment strategy, the California Jobs First Economic Blueprint. While the full document will be released in 2025, its draft offers exciting information for potential workers and their future employers:

• The framework encompasses ten primary industrial sectors that are critical to maintaining the State’s economy. These industries currently employ millions of workers across the State and produce billions of dollars in annual revenues.
• Administered by the Community Economic Resilience Fund (CERF), these apprenticeship-focused projects pursue California’s ambitious climate and economic goals, which aim at making the State carbon-neutral by 2045. CERF is powered by a $600M investment intended to stimulate the development of well-paying jobs in low-carbon industries. In its planning phase, CERF leadership worked with 13 High Road Transition Collaboratives around the State, each of which was granted $5M to build out their individual roadmaps to economic success, depending on the attributes and assets located within their region.
• The framework’s Regional Investment Initiative (RII) ensures that no community is overlooked or left out. The recent pandemic and weather-related disasters revealed significant service gaps in smaller, more remote communities. This program is designed to provide them with better, more comprehensive services and support to build a stronger local community economy from within. It should also prevent the repetition of previous failures and ensure that these small locales can grow their own economies and compete with their state-based and nationally situated competitors. Currently, the RII is completing its planning stage and has launched pilot projects across the State.
• The blueprint also recognizes that growth comes from new avenues as well as existing resources. It divides its industry focus into four segments, each of which supports a unique niche within each industry:
• The ‘Strengthen’ Stage – Established and economically competitive entities gain resources to continue their outward expansion. Industries identified in this category include manufacturing, professional and financial services, transport and logistics, and tourism, to name just a few.
• The ‘Accelerate’ Stage – Businesses and industries in emerging sectors gain funding to grow their capital and infrastructure foundations. Included in this strategy are organizations working in the life sciences, aerospace and defense, clean economy, and high-tech sectors.
• The ‘Bet’ Stage – Innovation also gets a nod with funding opportunities offered to emerging entities that provide high strategic importance within their industrial sphere. Entrepreneurs and other forward-thinking business leaders can find support to develop their unique but as-yet unproven initiatives in these areas: carbon management, critical minerals, artificial intelligence, and the emerging ‘bioeconomy.’
• The ‘Anchor’ Stage – Foundational entities located ‘on the ground’ in each region also benefit from the plan. These enterprises include existing businesses providing foundational support for workers, including education, child care, health care, and infrastructure management.

The blueprint sets out not just the goals but also the pathways to achieving its vision and commitment to economic growth through workforce development.

The CCCCO Weighs In

California’s Community College Chancellor’s Office (CCCCO) plays an integral part in the design, development, implementation, and success of many of California’s apprentice programs, and it works as a partner to the State in its goal of training 500,000 apprentices by 2029. The CCCCO also faces significant challenges in providing information, direction, and support for its 1.9 million students and 116 colleges. Underrepresented populations, economically challenged communities, and a lack of sustainable jobs and employment are all issues that arise on virtually every campus each year.

However, the agency has made good progress in its apprenticeship drive, with help from companion agencies like Jobs for the Future (JFF). That organization recently released a 2023 report on the depth and breadth of the apprenticeship initiative across the State:

• The Division of Apprenticeship Standards (an element of the CA Department of Industrial Relations) reports that the number of registered apprentices grew 11% between 2018 and 2023, from 84,217 to 93,798.
• Manufacturing provided the most apprenticeship opportunities (growing by 473% over that term), followed by healthcare (400%), IT (45%), and barbers and cosmetologists (95).
Barriers to further growth include insufficient employer engagement and a lack of funding options, both of which will be addressed with this new channel of state support.
Employers and future workers are encouraged to explore their apprenticeship options to find their own path to economic security through apprentice opportunities.

As the new year looms, many are looking to find a fulfilling and lucrative future in an existing or emerging industry. California offers its residents many opportunities by focusing on apprenticeships as training and workforce development tools.

 

Looking Ahead: Three EWD Developments in 2025

Pam Sornson, JD on December 17, 2024

By all accounts, 2024 was a momentous year. The world grappled with inflation, war, and wild weather disasters, while America also endured a polarizing election cycle. As it comes to a close, numerous experts are making predictions about how 2024 events will translate into 2025 realities. By all of those accounts, 2025 will present equally challenging circumstances that will require patience, diligence, and fortitude to navigate.

The Agentic Workforce

Artificial Intelligence (AI) continues to lead most surveys as the driver of 2025 innovation and development. In 2024, organizations focused on embracing generative AI and instructional AI as they embedded those into their systems and programming. In 2025, AI becomes ‘agentic,’ and adds the capacity of autonomous decision-making to its many features. Agentic AI introduces iterative planning and sophisticated reasoning as tools to autonomously resolve complicated, multi-step problems. Using an agentic AI program adds a digital collaborative element to team activities, allowing human members to build innovations on digitally devised data foundations.

Four processes facilitate agentic AI functions:

1. Perception – The agentic AI program searches all available resources for relevant information, including sensors, digital interfaces, and databases. Images, documents, and programs are all open for evaluation based on the user’s specific inquiry or Project.
2. Reasoning – Using a large language model (LLM) facilitates agentic AI’s ‘thinking’ aspect. The LLM is designed to formulate the tasks, solutions, and strategies indicated by incoming data as those relate to the Project at hand. Additionally, ‘retrieval-augmented generation’ combines general knowledge data with enterprise-specific information to ensure that the company’s technological response is truly relevant and actionable.
3. Action – Directed by the combined analytics of in-house and real-world data, the agentic AI program can then execute appropriately responsive actions immediately and without additional oversight by humans. Embedded ‘guardrails’ within the program keep its activities tailored to the standards and preferences of the company.
4. Learning – Like all AI programming, agentic programs also learn as they go along, utilizing a continuous ‘feedback’ loop to clarify and test data model sets. Over time, the programming improves organizational efficiencies and decision-making capacities.

AI has already upended much of the 2024 industrial complex; agentic AI promises to cause as much of a furor in 2025.

Workforce Evolution: A Community of Skills

Even with the introduction of agentic AI, the human element of ‘workforce’ remains a critical tool for corporate success. While the COVID-19 pandemic changed how many occupations are performed (remote vs on-site, as an example), it also continues to influence how occupations are viewed by management. Emerging analysis indicates that the workforce will no longer be treated as a network of disparate jobs. Instead, it will be viewed as a ‘community of skills’ that is more fluid and flexible in its performance parameters. The changed perspective allows workers to expand their capacities beyond their job descriptions to utilize their full, individual talent base to address enterprise concerns. It also allows team leaders to harness the full complement of employee skills and abilities to pursue corporate goals.

And, speaking of ‘teams,’ investing in a team-based organizational strategy is also on the rise. Rather than managing a group of workers, team leaders will work within skill-based ecosystems, assigning tasks and activities to the members with the most relevant skill sets. Emerging problems and concerns will be ‘teamed’ as the new resolution strategy.

Workforce Evolution: Workforce Flexibility

New ways to maximize workforce assets will also be on the table in the new year. One driver of this trend is the incoming ‘Gen-Z’ workforce, people born after 1997. Like Millenials (the cohort born between 1981 and 1997), this generation of workers is tech-savvy and has fully embraced living life online. They already explore much of their world through digital portals and expect their work-life to be equally digitized. Consequently, working remotely will continue to be an option for employment, wherever that is feasible. However, the emerging workforce is seeking more than just locational flexibility. These workers are also looking for a more personalized employment experience where the work they do is tailored to their individual preferences and tastes.

Employers are responding by developing a more adaptive work environment that accommodates worker proclivities while also furthering corporate goals.

• Some have introduced ‘flexibility credits’ that facilitate their worker’s personal realities. Rather than demanding a traditional workday of ‘9-5, five days a week,’ these bosses allow employees to choose the hours they work based on their personal lives and obligations. In some cases, the flexibility spans the entire workweek, and workers produce their effort during the timeframe that works best for them. In other cases, there are certain ‘core’ hours when the entire workforce must be on the job. Otherwise, each employee can ‘flex’ their work time to suit their needs.
• In other cases, a ‘compressed’ work schedule allows the effort typically made during a five-day week to be compressed into a shorter time frame. The standard workday now comprises five days of eight hours per day. A compressed schedule may allow a worker to complete their work in ten hours a day over four days.

The impact of Gen-Z on the workforce will be notable, especially because so many companies are now struggling to find the talent they need. In many cases, this ‘talent shortage’ is technologically driven; the emergence of digital artificial intelligence has exploded the demand for tech-savvy experts and there aren’t enough of those available to fill all available job positions. Consequently, when an employer finds a worker with this skill set and these capabilities, keeping them happy on the job is a necessity for the future of the business. Data reveals that advertising a flexible worksite will attract top talent while also keeping corporate morale high. And a highly productive workforce almost always leads to high profitability.

The new year looms and changes are coming to how America and Americans work. If even a small percentage of these prognostications are accurate, it appears that 2025 will be even more momentous than 2024.

 

2024 PCC EWD Conversations: How We Value Labor – or Not

Pam Sornson, JD on December 3, 2024

We are entering the 6th year of publication of The Pulse, a bi-monthly snapshot of the evolutions in global and local industrial sectors as seen through the eyes of Pasadena City College’s division of Economic and Workforce Development (PCC EWD). It’s been a momentous five years. The Pulse newsletter launched just as the COVID pandemic enveloped the world in early 2020, then evolved with its community through the emergence of the remote labor force, the advent of tele-education, and the rise of Artificial Intelligence as a global disruptor to all sectors.

In many ways, the pandemic was disastrous – millions lost their lives, while millions more lost their jobs and businesses. But, at the same time, COVID-19 pushed society through doors it had previously been reluctant to open:

  • Workers who had always been deemed ‘menial’ (and consequently ‘unseen’ by many in the community) were reclassified almost overnight as ‘essential’ because the services they provided were critical to maintaining their organization’s health and safety. Those occupations were finally garnering the respect they deserved.
  • The simple unfairness of long-entrenched social norms favoring some communities over others became apparent. Access to vaccines, in particular, revealed a ‘have’ and ‘have not’ culture that punished some neighborhoods in favor of others. Subsequently, internal processes across industries were modified in many ways to facilitate a more fair avenue to needed resources.
  • The transition from hands-on to digital work performance – from basic labor through all layers of oversight and management – happened almost overnight, too, as workers retreated home to work safely from there. Those businesses that had the capacity to do so transitioned their corporate activities to a technological resource, with many finding the new way of working to be better, more efficient, and more economically viable than the old way. In many, many cases, that transition has become permanent, and many workers continue to perform their labor in the comfort of their homes.

At the Pulse, we’ve tried to cover the issues that are most significant to our readers, those who are as invested in the economic success of our community as we are: educators, business owners, government agencies, and industry leaders. The pandemic and all its consequences have upended how everyone ‘does business,’ leaving many industrial fields open for reflection and reimagining.

 

What We’ve Learned So Far … About Legacy Laborforce Practices

The revelation of the ‘essential’ worker appears to have been a catalyst for a workforce overhaul and revolution. Seemingly overnight, society recognized the immense economic impact of the nation’s janitors, orderlies, stocking clerks, and all those others responsible for performing the fundamental functions that keep systems moving. While CEOs, corporate leaders, and management stayed safely behind their walls, these workers continued to show up at their worksites to keep those facilities clean, safe, and virus-free, even when the effort put their own lives in danger. That unique circumstance triggered the most extensive conversation on the Pulse: how do – or should – we value our workers?

Our exploration of this query was wide-ranging. We were curious about how today’s labor market evolved and why it remains so stuck in cultural norms that no longer serve its community:

  • Too often, labor was valued—and workers were paid accordingly—not in keeping with the ultimate value they produced but instead by the nature of who or what they were. Frequently, women, People of Color (POC), and the differently abled were assigned the lowest value for their effort regardless of the value it conferred simply because of those innate traits.
  • Economically, women, in particular, have fared poorly over the long term, not because their inputs have less value than a man’s but because their personhood isn’t recognized as having the same level of quality or reliability. Child-bearing is one reason still too often given for not considering a woman for a job or promotion; companies don’t want to invest in workers who can’t commit fully to the organization because their children may be prioritized over their occupation. While men are not subjected to this type of treatment, they also suffer when their interest in family matters is considered secondary to their obligation to their employer.
  • And it isn’t just women who don’t feel valued. As the pandemic rolled on, the country experienced a ‘Great Resignation.’ In 2021, more than 47 million people elected to voluntarily quit their work. While, yes, COVID and its health threat were the impetus in many cases, data indicates that America’s annual ‘quit rate’ had been rising since at least 2009. Some retired – the Boomer generation began hitting the 65-year mark in 2011. Others, however, were making choices to prioritize a better work/life balance, shuffling to new careers better suited to their talents, or simply refusing to return to (what they believed was) an unsafe workplace.

The pandemic appears to have been a catalyst for a labor force evolution, highlighting the exceptional value of previously unseen employees, offering opportunities to make long-desired changes in occupation, and reminding people that a ‘job’ is not also a ‘life.’

 

What We’re Seeing Now

Companies in all sectors have shifted policies and practices to accommodate the demands of the new, post-COVID workforce. As current and former employees assessed their situations, employers were looking for ways to either hire new people or retain the services of their existing work staff. Several themes emerged as drivers for revising how we value ‘work’ by optimizing worker satisfaction:

  • Work flexibility—Technology has given many employees the opportunity to work ‘remotely’ from anywhere, allowing them to make only intermittent appearances at the office. This phenomenon offers flexibility not only about where someone will do their job but also when they’re going to do it. When possible, many employers are content with providing a flexible work schedule that includes remote opportunities and suits their workers better.
  • Family matters—The importance of family relationships has also been elevated in workers’ opinions. Many men weren’t happy that workplace requirements caused them to lose precious time with their spouses and children. They began to advocate for equal time off to care for family members, and, in many sectors, the traditional ‘maternity leave’ standard has been revised as ‘family leave.’
  • Health security – The coronavirus posed a unique health risk to virtually everyone. Some jobs made it more prominent (see the discussions about ‘essential workers’ above), so employers were quick to do as much as possible to reduce that threat. In most other cases, the danger of illness or worse was sufficient to mandate changes in the physical configuration of the workplace to protect employees from inadvertent contamination. Companies eager to retain their workforce were attuned to these concerns and have made many changes within their facility to ensure a safe and healthy work environment.

 

The fadeout of the pandemic has ushered in a new normal for today’s workforce, shining a light on long-held injustices while compelling an overhaul on how the world – employers and employees – views the value of work. As the Pulse moves into its 6th year, we will continue to track how society values its labor force and continue to advocate for all workers to receive the highest possible levels of respect and compensation for their efforts.

 

2024 PCC EWD Conversations: the IIJA, AI, and Entrepreneurs

Pam Sornson, JD on December 3, 2024

Over the past two years, The Pulse newsletter, a production of the Economic and Workforce Development division of Pasadena City College (PCC EWD), has been exploring how a variety of EWD elements impact the economy, from individual industries to worker satisfaction to economic sector evolutions. From a worker’s point of view, we’ve looked at how society values labor, how diversity and equity principles affect workforce performance, and how workers leveraged the COVID-19 pandemic to further their personal goals and aspirations.

In this article, we’re looking at factors beyond the workforce that are playing an immense role in the evolution of economic growth. In just three short years, three phenomena have emerged that are overhauling the future of work:

Data indicates that the impact of these three influences will continue to roil America’s economies and transform the way their work gets done.

The IIJA aka the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL)

While IIJA funding spans virtually all meta-industries, five are receiving the bulk of its resources: transportation, energy, watersheds/coastlines, water systems in general, and broadband. Further, almost all of its initiatives -97% – allow spending specifically on workforce development as a critical element of the end goal of an updated, modernized national infrastructure. With more than $1.2 trillion authorized for expenditures on the country’s physical assets, including its roads, rails, airports, etc., the Bill is also focused on building an updated, modernized labor force to maintain it long into the future.

Four agencies are delegated with 95%+ of the distribution of its financial resources: the Department of Transportation (DOT), the Department of Commerce (DOC), the Department of Energy (DOE), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The DOT has the most funding available and is already deploying half its allotted amount across the country.

A Federal Infrastructure Hub developed by the Brookings Institute lists all projects authorized by the Bill, as well as funding allocations by state, awards granted (as of August 15, 2024), and the sectors in which they are deployed. The think-tank also shares a Published Guidance on calculating the formula for workforce training funds, which cover new and upskilling training costs within industries, including apprenticeships, pre-apprenticeships, and other on-the-job training opportunities. Standards that facilitate a more equitable and balanced workforce sector are built into the workforce development strategy. Funding is available for job creation efforts that support occupations with union capacities, promote the use of project labor agreements, and ensure employer neutrality regarding union organizing. There is also guidance on best practices for expanding access to work and economic opportunities, especially as those arise through investments in transportation infrastructure projects.

The IIJA investments are already funding thousands of new jobs while rebuilding the nation’s infrastructure for the 21st Century and beyond.

AI (Artificial Intelligence)

Like the money associated with the IIJA/BIL, the technology related to AI is having an immense impact on global, national, and regional labor force developments. While the digital automation of repetitive tasks isn’t new, applying an overview of AI across those processes reveals new ways to improve the systems in which they operate. AI programming is able to discern system and workforce-related nuances that are invisible to the human eye and are often buried deep within processors and databases. Those digitally obtained insights provide new process perspectives that also frequently suggest a need for further innovation and development, such as occupational upskilling requirements, enhanced opportunities for personalization, and even the creation of new jobs to fulfill evolving industry demands.

On the other hand, as the opportunities and promise of AI evolve, the number of occupations it can potentially disrupt rises. A White House report analyzed laborforce data as it reflects aspects that are particularly ‘AI vulnerable.’ According to the July 2024 document:

  • As much as 10% of America’s overall occupational roster is at risk of decline or obsolescence because of the new technology.
  • Older workers are also more at risk of losing their jobs to or because of an AI resource. In many cases, the complexity of the emerging digital toolset is beyond the skill set of the older employee.
  • Organizations and occupations that are Ai-vulnerable are also less likely to unionize or have unionization efforts supported by management.

Another facet of the IIJA/BIL is providing resources that offer workers displaced by AI access to educational and training opportunities to replace AI jobs. In fact, Cisco, a global technology services provider, reports that, in the Information and Communications Technology sector (ICT), up to 92% of all occupations might require technology-related upskilling and reskilling as the digital tool becomes more embedded in industrial and economic processes. Its report, created in conjunction with several other global technology conglomerates, outlines not only how AI is transforming the ICT industrial network but also offers recommendations for upskilling 47 jobs to match future ICT demands.

Entrepreneurs

The United States celebrates its entrepreneurial history regularly, as many of the contributions invented by notable Americans continue to provide service and value. Ben Franklin’s eyeglasses, Thomas Edison’s lightbulb, and Henry Ford’s automobile are all fundamental elements in the country’s persona and sense of pride.

Its emerging entrepreneurial corps is also making waves in the history books; recent data shows that the number of entrepreneur-owned businesses is growing, as is the number of jobs they’re creating. Especially in the small business sector (<500 employees), across the country, new companies are opening in response to unmet labor and market demands. According to the U.S. Treasury, they are responsible for over 70% of all new jobs created since 2019, and that number is growing. In 2024, new business applications averaged 430,000 per month, with those intending to hire workers comprising ~1/3 of those (140,000). And the diversity of the burgeoning entrepreneurial community is impressive, too. Almost half (42%) are female, while the numbers of Black, Asian, and Hispanic small business owners are also nearing their all-time highs.

Additionally, as of Q4 23, small businesses accounted for ~half (51%) of all private employers while also generating over 70% of all new jobs since 2019. These new enterprises are also seeking a well-trained workforce so they canvass specifically for updated digital and AI-related skillsets to ensure their competitive edge.

Further, economic developments in 2024 are encouraging entrepreneurs to continue their investments in labor and the economy. Recent drops in inflation and interest rates are compelling them to seek growth funding at a higher pace as they envision robust investments and engagement with consumers.

 

These three influences – the IIJA, Artificial Intelligence, and Entrepreneurialism – are already having an immense impact on how the nation moves forward economically in the post-COVID era. As we look toward 2025, we are expecting their presence to exert even more pressure on businesses and industries and, consequently, their affiliated workforce and economic development resources. The Pulse newsletter will be following those evolutions, giving our readers insights into the ‘future of work’ and how the evolution of jobs and employment will influence the global industrial complex.

 

The PCC EWD 2024 Future Of Work Conference – Part 3: The Panel Discussion

Pam Sornson, JD on November 19, 2024

The nexus of sports, media, and entertainment was at the heart of the conversation during the 6th Annual Future of Work Conference (FOW) hosted by Pasadena City College on October 29th. Three notable public figures (Assemblyman Mike Fong, PCC President/Superintendent Jose Gomez, and LAEDC President Stephen Cheung) and two thrilling keynote speakers (Julie Urhman of the Angel City Football Club and Jasmine Star, business strategist) shared their insights on how sports have impacted their lives and careers.

The real convo, however, was among the four panelists, each of whom presented a unique and fresh perspective from their own personal and professional journeys. As a collection of individual commentaries, the discussion was fascinating. As a panel as a whole, the symposium was comprehensive in its scope.

 

The Topic:

Championing Careers: Workforce Development at the Intersection of Sports and Entertainment

A sport is not just a game; it’s many games, and how they’re being played is changing. Today’s professional and amateur sports environment hosts billions of fans across hundreds of thousands of sports, leagues, and players. All that sweat adds up to big business, and each of the panelists is invested in that business in one way or another:

Ms. Reaves has spent her life in the sports and entertainment industries. As a member of the LA Tourism & Convention Board and the Women in Sports and Events Inc. organization, she’s experienced first-hand how sports impact communities and how women impact sports.

Ms. Perez-Palacios spent years in Southern California’s political system, managing protocols, communications, and outreach for several administrations. The Los Angeles Chargers are the beneficiary of her expertise; in her Cultural Affairs Director role, she acts as the nexus between the team and LA’s diverse and sports-mad populations.

As a trade association, the LA Sports Council focuses on sports and sporting inclusion and innovation to positively impact the community. In his role as President, Cacciato brings his years of academic excellence in sports administration to drive the agency’s strategies and practices.

Every sports team also is a business or does business with its community. Dr. Cummo’s workforce development focus ensures that LA-based sporting companies and industries have the staff they need to meet fan demands and excel in their market.

 

The Questions:

Individually, the perspectives of this quad of industry, culture, business, and academic experts were informative and insightful. Together, their responses to questions from moderator Stephen Cheung (President – LA Economic Development Corporation) expanded the conversation into a genuinely all-encompassing treatise on how entertainment, sports, and media function as a whole sector in and of itself.

How do we create a triple-value bottom line – profit, community, environment – by building a sports-focused workforce?

The uniform answer from all was, “Bring your best game, whatever that might be.”

  • Perez-Palacios noted that ‘diversity’ is an industry driver. Every person offers unique skills and talents as a workforce member, regardless of their color, ethnicity, etc. Agencies that embrace the diversity of their staff – and fandom! – will grow more quickly and broadly than those that limit their potential candidates.
  • Reaves noted that women are becoming more involved with organized sports at all levels. Women’s sports teams are emerging in many communities, and as many as 75% of all women identify as sports fans. Harnessing that energy can only benefit the triad of sporting industries as a group.
  • Cacciato clarified how ‘sports,’ as a trade industry, opens doors to many non-game opportunities. The presentation of LA’s 2028 Summer Olympics, for example, is a collaboration of many sectors: entertainment (of course), but also transportation, hospitality, venue management, etc. Every element that supports game playing but isn’t specifically involved with the game or sport itself will need staffing and oversight by non-athletes.
  • Cummo discussed the physical impact of sports and sporting events on their environment, noting that sports organizers are addressing sustainability and green energy initiatives as well as athletics. Building these green standards into LA’s sporting sector will generate thousands of jobs needing thousands of well-trained and skilled workers.

How does your organization connect with potential sports industry workforce candidates?

Across the board, the answer was, “Go find them!”

  • Cacciato reported that every game, regardless of its type or caliber, typically has spectators, even if it’s just people stopping to watch during their nightly stroll. There can be job opportunities available for those folks if they are informed about them.
  • Reaves shared that companies that have already hired for sports-based events will almost certainly be hiring again for future events. People looking to enter the sector can start as a parking attendant or in crowd control to get a flavor of the work and a foot in the door.
  • Perez-Palacios suggests that social media channels can be helpful for potential candidates. Folks who respond to or engage with team-related email blasts and Facebook posts are often open to exploring a more significant role with their favorite team or player.
  • Cummo encouraged the panelists and audience to engage directly with the schools teaching relevant courses. California’s Community College Career Centers are conduits between employers and employees; those resources always benefit from industry professionals contributing to educational processes.

Other workforce-related suggestions were made:

  • Volunteer opportunities at many levels of a sporting operation often provide the open door through which paid employment becomes possible.
  • There are jobs beyond the foundational ‘sporting event’ occupations that require specialization, too. Finance, media, healthcare, and even mental health professionals can all contribute to an athletic team’s success.
  • The panelists also noted LA’s high profile in the sporting world. With Orange County teams included, the region is home to 13 professional sports teams, all of which have both resources and needs. Connect with all of them to expand opportunities for workers and the enterprise.

The panel discussion was an invaluable resource for Conference attendees to clarify how ‘sports,’ as an individual industry, can influence and drive growth in several ancillary sectors. Those who can’t play on the actual field can still have a personal and lucrative role in the game.

 

The PCC EWD 2024 Future Of Work Conference – Part 4: Key Takeaways

Pam Sornson, JD on November 19, 2024

While the 2024 Pasadena City College Future of Work Conference focused on sports, media, and entertainment, many of the messages shared there translate into other industries and workforce sectors. These insights are of value to any business owner, industrialist, employee, or entrepreneur, and sharing them here extends the value of the Conference to any entity looking to find a qualified workforce, public recognition and growth, and greater success within its sector.

 

Leader Insights

The well-informed insights of the FOW Conference speakers and hosts were honed over decades of career and life experiences. Each participant freely shared how they built their skillset and then how they applied those skills to their roles within their organizations. Reviewing their individual contributions as a whole, their opinions and successes appear to converge around a few themes and theories that have proven successful for them all. Of further value to readers: a very convenient ‘sports’ analogy is available to explain how their effort propels their enterprise into the future.

All conference participants noted their intentional involvement with their local community, whether that’s a neighborhood high school softball team or a regionally dominant professional league franchise. The examples of significant outreach were instructional and inspiring:

Make the Connection

Every business must identify and unite with its target market; sports teams are no different. In these cases, the game, team, or player is often the draw. In non-sports businesses, the product or service may be the attraction for new buyers. Companies looking to connect better with a potential market must find ways that resonate with the consumers they’re trying to find. Using every available form of outreach – email, social media, television, flyers, etc. – offers the best opportunity to see and secure this new customer base.

Publicize Outside the Box

The Angel City Football Club (ACFC) prioritized community outreach before it even launched its team in the LA area. Recognizing that securing and maintaining public attention on a women’s sports team posed unusual hurdles (especially in LA’s already busy professional sports environment), ACFC’s female leaders began developing its public persona first, connecting with major soccer organizations and supporters to get the word out early and often. Soccer is a global sport, so many international people and communities were eager to hear their message and watch their team emerge.

Their outreach proved to be extraordinarily successful: just two years after its formation, the market valuation of the ACFC was set at $250 million when it sold in July 2024. Further, the new LA representative of the National Women’s Soccer League scored the most lucrative contract in the history of women’s sports at the end of its 2023 season. The $240 million contract will televise games on major streaming services and broadcast networks.

These organizations show up off the field, too. They participate with or volunteer for charities; their athletes make public appearances regularly, and school and hospital visits provide excellent public relations fodder for the company newsletter or email blast.

Reduce Barriers to Participation

Many people struggle to make ends meet, which impedes their opportunity to find better resources in their community. Corporations looking to build both a fan base and a workforce can assist promising future human assets by helping them with basics so they can focus on their future. Internships, apprenticeships, and training opportunities that maximize available timeframes provide options for course attendance and on-the-job training.

As an example, the ACFC focuses on women, girls, and the non-binary community, and its mission is to improve equity through sports. Achieving that goal means looking for ways to increase its target population’s participation in and enjoyment of team sports while also addressing the inequities that have prevented earlier participation.

The Club is running several strategies designed to help its target market get out of the house and onto the field:

  • They streamline sponsors to maximize the impact of their core outreach channels. Their inaugural sponsor, DoorDash, partnered with the team in 2021, inking a deal committed to delivering 250,000 meals through its Project DASH initiative to those in need in the LA region. In exchange, the mobile food delivery service gets a mid/center placement on the team jersey and other merchandise. The international poverty-fighting non-profit agency CARE has also joined this effort to identify the organizations most likely to benefit from the service.
  • The ACFC also recognized the challenges many women faced when it comes to financial management. In too many cases, women aren’t exposed to or don’t have access to financial literacy materials, so they are unable to access resources that are easily accessible to their male counterparts. The ACFC now offers classes to its female soccer fans to narrow the financial acumen gender divide.

Utilize All Available Tools

All these sports administrators recognize the value of incorporating available assets into every club project or outreach. The ‘Game Day Experience’ reference offers a unique case study:

  • Each fan is an individual who experiences each game day in a particularly unique way.
  • Data gathered throughout the consumer/entity engagement can flag organizations to populations that require novel or different types of support to be fully engaged with their team.
  • Tailoring game day activities to meet these fan demands helps the team connect better with their audience, regardless of the score of the game.

Social media technology, traditional media outlets, schools, fairs, and other community events and gatherings all offer appropriate venues for sports-based businesses to find both fans and a workforce.

 

Final Messages:

As the Conference closed, the panelists were asked how they would advise a person or company seeking to work with a sports team (or any organization that matches their business parameters):

  • The LA Chargers’ Lilianna Perez-Palacios advised job and career seekers to be themselves. “There is no one like you; there is only you.” The individual’s innate skills and talents will determine the best fit for their next employer.
  • The Rose Bowl’s Monique Reaves urged persistence in the pursuit of a career in any element of the ‘sports’ industrial sector. As the industry grows, more jobs are becoming available and need a workforce to fill them.
  • The LA Sports Council’s Matt Cacciato suggests that presenting oneself with confidence and self-esteem is essential, too. Every applicant for every job has a skill set that may offer tremendous value, but the organization can’t know what that is unless they receive that data directly.
  • PCC’s VP – Economic and Workforce Development division, Dr. Salvatrice Cummo, advised that applicants prepare for the interview by familiarizing themselves with the entity. Asking questions about the job, the team (or product/service), and the enterprise demonstrates strategic thinking and advanced planning skills.

 

Once again, Pasadena City College demonstrated its unique presence in LA’s EWD sector by hosting an informative, entertaining, and enlightening Future of Work conference. Thank you to all participants, attendees, and supporters, whether they’re sports fans or not.

 

The PCC EWD 2024 Future Of Work Conference – Part 1: Hosts and Moderator

Pam Sornson, JD on November 5, 2024

The house was full for Tuesday’s Future of Work Conference (FOW), hosted by the Economic and Workforce Development division of Pasadena City College (PCC EWD). The theme of the event was “Championing a Transformative Future,” with the primary focus being on ‘Sports,’ as those activities – both professional and amateur – impact Los Angeles and its constituents. Panelists, speakers, and audience members expanded the scope of the conversation to include equity, opportunity, and emerging workforce demands in the city and region. Not least, the status and accomplishments of the 2024 Los Angeles ChangeMaker of the Year recipient, Dr. Jim Lancaster of the Los Angeles Community College District, reminded everyone that anyone can improve their lot in life and their neighborhood, one car engine at a time.

 

Sports – Always Drawing a Crowd

It may have been the Sports theme that attracted 240 in-person guests to PCC’s Westerbeck Hall (with an unknown number attending online), or it may have been the excellence of the speakers and panelists who graced the stage. The PCC EWD FOW Conference team had gathered a notable roster of ‘who’s who’ in their sporting field, and everyone brought their best game (pun intended). No matter the personal reasons for attending, all guests were entertained and enlightened by the conversation and were given much to think about as they headed back to their world.

Speakers and Hosts

Host Dr. Salvatrice Cummo, Vice President, PCC EWD division, opened the day, welcoming guests and introducing participants.

Dr. Jose Gomez

The first to speak was the new President/Superintendent of PCC, Dr. Jose Gomez. Dr. Gomez arrived at PCC in early 2024, bringing with him decades of educational leadership excellence. In his most recent position as COO at Cal State University – LA (among many, many significant accomplishments), he championed higher education in prisons, promoted inclusion in the biosciences sector, and helped to found Achieve LA, a partnership with the YMCA to support youth in under-resourced, communities.  

Dr. Gomez also pointed out Pasadena’s notable presence in the region:

  • The Rose Bowl hosted its first football game in 1922.
  • The New York Yankees stayed at the Langham Hotel while in town for their first World Series game.
  • Even Albert Einstein spent time in Pasadena!  

He is very enthusiastic about his new role at PCC and about the prospects of PCC students pursuing careers in the sports industry.

Assemblyman Mike Fong

Assemblyman Mike Fong also took the stage. As the Representative for District 49, Mr. Fong has pursued initiatives to reduce homelessness, add jobs, and expand access to education. From his perspective, the sports industry provides a broad scope of career opportunities unrelated to games or playing. Logistics, hospitality, and marketing are just three industry sectors that play an immense role in the success of any sports team.

Stephen Cheung, CEO LAEDC & WTCLA

Acting as host and moderator of the panel discussion was Stephen Cheung, the President and CEO of the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC), as well as the President of the World Trade Center of LA. Mr. Cheung’s involvement in and influence on economic development has been exceptional:

  • Currently, he oversees eight LAEDC departments, including Industry Cluster Development and Applied Economics. The work done by the LAEDC and WTCLA touches virtually every industrial sector in the LA region and the State of California.  
  • Earlier, he was Managing Director of International Trade and Foreign Affairs for two LA mayors, developing programs for LA’s port systems (including LAX and the Port of Los Angeles, which includes both LA and Long Beach ports and is the largest port system in America), green technologies, and international trade.

Not surprisingly, Mr. Cheung proved to be an excellent moderator of the Panel discussion, which is covered in this edition’s second article.

The 2024 Change Maker Award – Dr. Jim Lancaster

The Economic and Workforce Development division of Pasadena City College (PCC EWD) is honored to announce Dr. Jim Lancaster as the recipient of its 2024 Change Maker Award. Dr. Lancaster is the Vice Chancellor for Workforce Development for the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCCD). The announcement was made on Tuesday, October 29, 2024, at the 6th Annual PCC EWD Future of Work Conference.

Dr. Lancaster’s dedication to his industry and his students led to his selection as the recipient of this year’s award, which highlights the activities of notable participants in LA County’s EWD sector. Dr. Lancaster’s Associate in Science (AS) degree in Automotive Technology from Cerritos College launched his automotive mechanic career, and he used his experience as a Master Chevrolet Technician to pursue higher education in the automotive field. He began teaching automotives at Cerritos as he worked through his academic goals, achieving a Bachelor’s degree in Vocational Education from CSU Long Beach, an MA in Industrial and Technical Studies from CSU Los Angeles, and an Ed.D in Educational Leadership: Community College Specialization from CSU Fullerton. Time spent at Citrus College as a faculty member (and President of the faculty association) and at the Los Angeles Trade Technical College as Vice President of Instruction facilitated his eventual appointment as Vice President of Academic Affairs at Los Angeles City College. That role was quickly followed by his current assignment as Vice Chancellor, Workforce and Economic Development for the LACCD.     

Throughout his career, Dr. Lancaster continuously forged partnerships between academia and industry.

  • He recognized the value of hands-on learning and developed pathways to career success based on individual student goals and the industrial demands of the evolving automotive sector.
  • He’s also been very effective at ensuring learners gain insights into equity principles in the workplace, so their participation includes both excellent work skills and civic responsibility.
  • His contributions added substantial value to the Advantage LA Plan, which helps older students and workers find the unique support they need.

Across his years in the industry, Dr. Lancaster has fostered relationships between businesses, educators, and industry leaders, connecting market demands to student career objectives. His efforts have secured the success of both student success and workforce development initiatives, empowering learners to engage more closely with their careers while facilitating innovation and evolution within industrial sectors.

Congratulations, Dr. Lancaster!

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