By Mike Hall
California's Silicon Valley long has been viewed as a trendsetter for both the high-tech industry and the 21st-century economy. Not surprisingly, it's home to one of the fastest-growing trends in the nation's changing workforce: the transformation of full-time jobs with benefits into temporary, part-time and on-call jobs that offer no security or benefits. As much as 40 percent of the Valley's workforce comes under this new category, according to the South Bay AFL-CIO Labor Council. These clerical and administrative positions typically pay about $7 an hour, according to Working Partnerships USA.
The region has nearly triple the national percentage of people employed by temporary agencies nationwide, according to a 1996 study by the San Jose-based Working Partnerships.
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From America@work, May 1999. |
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In an innovative response to the changing workforce, the labor council, area unions and community groups launched Solutions@work, a nonprofit, union-based temp agency that seeks to raise the pay and benefits for the growing number of workers forced into temporary jobs.
"We have to acknowledge that people work differently these days," says Amy Dean, South Bay CLC executive officer. "Our goal is to transform employment practices by marrying a placement agency to an advocacy strategy that, in time, will raise the wage floor, allow access to benefits and affect overall hiring practices."
Through a combination of community pressure and the organization's proposed code of conduct, Solutions@work seeks to ensure job security and basic benefits so workers who choose to work part-time won't pay the price in diminished benefits or job security.
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| | | At work: Reginald Martin, a temp agency veteran, says Solutions@work provides better pay and benefits and the type of skills training and support services he never received from traditional temporary agencies. |
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"We'll be able to do that through a combination of advocacy and being a player in the market," Dean says.
Launched earlier this year, Solutions@work already has begun placing workers. One example is Reginald Martin, a 41-year-old former truck driver who worked for several temp agencies in his quest for a career change. Unlike other agencies, Martin says, Solutions@work not only offers higher pay and better benefits but also office skills training at nearby Mission College and support services such as mapping out bus routes to work and school.
"I feel fortunate because I am reaching two goals at once: going to school and earning some money," he says.
As a nonprofit, Solutions@work will be able to offer better salaries and, eventually, portable benefits, training and certification. At the same time, by charging companies lower fees, the group expects to attract a large pool of employers.
The union-community coalition combines the collective power of the South Bay CLC and its community allies to help shape the future of the area's growing temporary workforce. The coalition plans to ask the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors to adopt a code of conduct covering temporary agencies working on county-funded projects. The proposal would bar firms that refused to sign the code from doing business with the county.
