Workforce Systems Aren’t Broken—They’re Just Not Listening.
I’ve sat at tables with CEOs, workforce boards, and community members—and what’s missing is rarely funding. It’s proximity. It’s humility. It’s people.
Workforce development in this country is often framed as a system meant to uplift, reconnect, and empower. But in practice, it too often reduces people to placement outcomes—checking boxes while ignoring the root causes of inequity. It rarely asks what true economic freedom looks like for those furthest from access. And when it does ask, it often fails to listen.
I was recently in a high-level stakeholder meeting—one of those monthly convenings where workforce boards, city leaders, and nonprofit executives gather to talk strategy. In the room was a young woman who had once been labeled “disconnected,” though what she really was, was brilliant. She shared her interest in representing youth voice at the table. She didn’t just suggest that youth should be heard—she offered herself.
The adults in the room nodded in agreement. Said “Yes, we need that.” Said, “We love that idea.” But when it came time to talk about compensation, the support evaporated. No one wanted to pay her.
That moment wasn’t just extractive—it was traumatizing. What was presented as inclusion turned out to be performance. What looked like a bridge was actually a gate. And that young woman, who showed up ready to contribute, left feeling used and unseen. She no longer wanted to work with the group. And I don’t blame her.
This is the heart of the issue: You can’t build equitable workforce pipelines without engaging those furthest from access at every level—design, implementation, and leadership.
We talk about systems change, but we invite the same voices to the table. We say we want innovation but reject it when it doesn’t sound like a keynote speech. And we wonder why outcomes for BIPOC youth, returning citizens, and low-wage workers haven’t improved.
When community is an afterthought, the harm is not hypothetical. It’s replicated. We retraumatize those we claim to serve. We train people to believe their voices only matter when they’re unpaid, unacknowledged, or filtered through someone with a title.
And yet: When we center the voices of the most impacted, everyone wins. Programs become more relevant. Trust deepens. Systems become responsive instead of extractive. Outcomes improve because design finally reflects reality.
So what now?
If we want to build workforce systems that work for real people, we must:
Hire and compensate community co-designers—not just “engage” them
Require workforce boards to include youth, returning citizens, and low-wage workers as voting members
Support trauma-informed career coaching and wraparound services that meet people where they are
Hold CEOs and hiring managers accountable not just for diversity—but for inclusion, belonging, and equitable advancement
We can’t afford to build pathways that lead nowhere. And we shouldn’t ask people to walk them alone.
A workforce system that doesn’t include community voice at the table isn’t broken—it’s designed that way. We can do better. And it starts by listening differently.