FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
October 1, 2024

SAN DIEGO – The Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW) has been awarded a $3 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Critical Sector Job Quality Grants Program. The funding will address the healthcare worker shortage in San Diego by creating pathways for historically marginalized workers to access high-demand allied healthcare jobs, improving patient care and job quality.

The grant is part of a larger initiative by the Biden-Harris Administration focused on improving job quality and expanding access to well-paying jobs in key sectors like healthcare. By bringing marginalized communities into the workforce, the initiative aims to create equitable career opportunities and strengthen the healthcare system.

“With this grant, we’re not only tackling the severe healthcare worker shortage, but we’re also helping people in our communities find great careers in healthcare,” said Dave Regan, President of SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West. “This effort will change lives, improve patient care, and raise the bar for what it means to work in this industry. The future of healthcare in San Diego looks brighter thanks to this investment in job quality and training.”

In partnership with Futuro Health, a national non-profit whose unique education journeys enable diverse learners from all walks of life to earn an industry-valued healthcare credential, workforce development agency San Diego Workforce Partnership, and employer partners Tri-City Medical Center and AlliedUP Cooperative, SEIU-UHW will lead a project to grow new and incumbent workers in allied healthcare professions.

“Making the transition from a service job to becoming a healthcare professional as an EMT has been life-changing for me. Not only am I earning a steady income, but I also now have access to health benefits — something I’ve been seeking for a long time but found difficult to secure,” said Hailey B., Futuro Health Scholar, Emergency Room Technician Program. “I am thrilled that people in San Diego will have access to the same opportunity that changed my life. It’s incredible to think about how many more lives will be transformed through this program.”

Key program components include:

• Broad Outreach: SEIU-UHW’s union members will serve as Education Ambassadors, conducting outreach to disadvantaged communities and engaging friends, family, and neighbors as trusted advisors on career opportunities in allied healthcare.
• Tuition-Free Scholarships: Scholarships will be provided for learners to pursue education journeys with Futuro Health that lead to a credential in high-demand healthcare roles.
• Career Support and Peer Advising: Participants will receive peer advising and career support throughout their journey, from training to job placement, ensuring they are equipped for success in the field.
• Paid Work Experience: Program participants will gain hands-on experience in key in-demand jobs, withpathways to employment provided by Tri-City Medical and AlliedUP.

The grant will also allow healthcare staffing to radically re-envision the role that temporary and contract work can play by utilizing AlliedUP Cooperative. AlliedUP, a unionized worker-owned healthcare staffing firm, will support and place contract and temporary allied healthcare workers in jobs with good wages, benefits and working conditions, while providing workers direct involvement in workplace governance.

“This effort is indicative of the power of unity and collaboration to better the lives of our employees by creating generational opportunity. We are grateful to our healthcare partners at SEIU-UHW and proud to support the creation of upward mobility pathways to reveal endless possibility for those that dare to dream,” said Gene Ma, MD, FACEP, and President and CEO, Tri-City Medical Center.

Additionally, the grant enables a partnership with employers committed to hiring new entrants from historically marginalized communities to meet their identified demand for the critical jobs of medical assistant, patient care technician, emergency technician, phlebotomists and more.

Media Contact: [email protected].  

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SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW) is a healthcare justice union of more than 100,000 healthcare workers, patients and healthcare activists united to ensure affordable, accessible, high-quality care for all Californians, provided by valued and respected healthcare workers. Learn more at www.seiu-uhw.org.