On Tuesday, October 25th we hosted our 13th Annual Massachusetts Jobs and Workforce Summit, returning to an in-person conference for the first time since 2019. Nearly 250 attendees attended from business, labor, workforce development providers and administrations, community organizations and other non-profits invested in the workforce development system. 

The program opened up with a discussion between Massachusetts Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development Rosalin Acosta and Jill Ashton, Northeast Regional Administrator of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Women’s Bureau. They provided insights into the current trends in the MA and national labor markets, with a particular focus on the realities facing women and people of color in today’s economy.

The conference also included panels on the economic impacts of accessible affordable child care and early education on job seekers and employers, scaling effective programs to build future talent, and connecting with untapped talent to overcome post-pandemic recruitment challenges.

The program’s closing keynote, former Mayor of Boston and now President and CEO of EMPath, Kim Janey, focused on creating equity in workforce development. In small groups attendees worked together to develop policy ideas that help address inequities in job training and the economy.

The conference was highlighted by an awards ceremony celebrating the contributions of the Employer of the Year, the Rising Workforce Leader, a Lifetime Achievement Award for a longtime legislative champion, and an inaugural award named after and presented to the long-time former Executive Director of the Workforce Solutions Group.

WSG Workforce awardees:

2022 Employer of the Year Award – Citizens 

2022 Rising Workforce Leader Award – Amelia Diaz, I Have A Future MA

2022 Lifetime Achievement Award – State Representative Joseph F. Wagner

2022 Kathie Mainzer Award – Kathie Mainzer 

From left to right: State Representative Joseph Wagner, Amelia Diaz, Kathie Mainzer and Lisa Murray.

We would like to thank everyone for joining us at the Summit and give a special shoutout to our sponsors, we couldn’t have pulled off this event without them! View our 2022 sponsors here.