On November 7th Abram Friedman Occupational Center (AFOC), an LA Unified Division of Adult and Career Education school, co-hosted a Rapid Response event organized by Maricela Hernandez, from the City of LA Workforce Development Board (WDB), and the City of LA Economic and Workforce Development Department (EWDD) to provide services and support for the 900 employees laid off by the Youth Policy Institute (YPI). In addition to LA Unified and the agencies named above, the State of California Employment Development Department (EDD) and potential employers along with various housing and support agencies participated in the event.
Several of the employers who participated were accepting applications from the laid-off employees on-the-spot, while all of them were able to provide guidance on current and future employment opportunities. The co-located LAUSD/EWDD Navigator team provided information on low cost, high quality career training opportunities along with details on how the training might be paid through the City of LA WorkSource Centers. Dan Homer, AFOC Navigator, commented, “Despite the fact they were now unemployed, many of the participants seemed enthusiastic about the LAUSD re-training opportunities and the support provided by other agencies.”