$700,000 awarded to workforce organizations from across the country to center workers and learners of color
(March 5, 2025) – The Fund for Workforce Equity, a pooled investment fund led by Workforce Matters, announced seven grant recipients will each receive grants of up to $100,000 to implement initiatives that center workers and learners of color in designing or implementing workforce policies and programs. The grantees, workforce development organizations from across the country, will receive flexible resources and support to pilot, innovate, or extend strategies.
“We’re excited to make a second round of funding to reach more organizations across the country who are centering worker and learner voices,” said Loh-Sze Leung, co-director of Workforce Matters. “The important, continuing work of our grantees shows just how impactful these efforts can be in transforming workforce systems and policies and improving outcomes for all.”
The grantees include:
- Adhikaar for Human Rights and Social Justice – Queens, NY
- Buffalo Center for Arts and Technology – Buffalo, NY
- Building Skills Partnership – Los Angeles, CA
- Impact Justice – Oakland, CA
- Michigan AFL-CIO Workforce Development Institute – Detroit, MI
- Pilipino Workers Center of Southern California – Los Angeles, CA
- Todos Juntos Learning Center – Austin, TX
“We’re thrilled to be partnering with The Fund for Workforce Equity to enhance employment pathways and continue to empower young people impacted by incarceration to own and leverage their experiences as assets in their career journeys,” said Kriss Goss-Marr, Director of Leadership Programs at Impact Justice.
“These selected grantee organizations are leading the way to uplift workers’ voices and advance quality jobs and workplaces that enable all individuals to thrive and build the careers they desire,” said Lauren Crain, director of U.S. strategy and programs at the World Education Services (WES) Mariam Assefa Fund, which is focused on building inclusive economies for immigrants and refugees.
The Fund for Workforce Equity is supported by the Allstate Foundation, American Institutes for Research, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, the Gates Foundation, the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, the James Irvine Foundation, JPMorgan Chase, the Kessler Foundation, the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation, the Truist Foundation, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Walmart.org, the WES Mariam Assefa Fund, and supporting members of Workforce Matters.
Workforce Matters is a national network of grantmakers who work together to strengthen workforce development philanthropy. Drawing on expert and practitioner knowledge, Workforce Matters empowers workers, learners, and job seekers to realize their full potential; dismantles inequities based on race, gender, ability, and other individual characteristics; and advances equitable education and employment outcomes for youth and adults.
