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CURRENT PROJECTS:
Unregulated Work: We recently completed a survey of 4,387 workers in low-wage industries in Chicago, Los Angeles and New York City. In partnership with researchers at Cornell University, the National Employment Law Project, Rutgers University, and UCLA, we interviewed workers to document the prevalence of violations of employment and labor laws in the nation’s three largest cities. Through the use of a cutting-edge sampling methodology, we were able to reach workers who are often undercounted or missed by conventional surveys, such as unauthorized immigrants and those working "off the books." We collected detailed information on workers’ hours, wages and working conditions, from which we documented violations of minimum wage, overtime, off-the-clock, and other workplace laws. Click here to read a full-version of the report "Broken Laws, Unprotected Workers: Violations of Employment and Labor Laws in America's Cities." The study was funded by the Ford Foundation, Haynes Foundation, Joyce Foundation, and Russell Sage Foundation.
Opportunity Chicago: CUED in collaboration with Abt Associates, Inc., is conducting a hybrid formative and summative evaluation of the five-year (2006 – 2010), $23 million Opportunity Chicago workforce development initiative supporting the Chicago Housing Authority’s (CHA) Plan for Transformation, and documenting the model for use by local and national public workforce development systems. The initiative seeks to place 5,000 CHA public-housing residents into stable jobs by the end of 2010 by providing residents with intensive support services and expanded employment skills and training programs, as well as advocating for public policy changes to improve the local workforce development system’s capacity to serve residents and help them earn family-supporting incomes. The evaluation is funded by The Partnership for New Communities.
An Economic and Workforce Development Strategy for the Chicago Climate Action Plan (with Center on Wisconsin Strategy and Green For All): This project examines options and opportunities for the City of Chicago to develop a coordinated economic and workforce development strategy related to the implementation of the Chicago Climate Action Plan, a comprehensive strategy for greenhouse gas emission reductions that was released in September 2008. This research considered areas of likely labor market impacts of CCAP-related strategies, in terms of new job creation, changing skill requirements, and economic development opportunities. For three key impact areas – Energy Efficiency, Landscape and Horticulture, and Recycling and Reuse – CUED also analyzed potential career ladders and training gaps for those occupations. The project is supported by the Global Philanthropy Partnership, with funding from Nathan Cummings Foundation and Fry Foundation.
Evaluation of the City of Chicago’s Sector-Based Workforce Centers Initiative: This project examines the City of Chicago’s recent initiative to open two sector-based centers – one for manufacturing (ManufacturingWorks), one for customer service/hospitality/retail (ServiceWorks) – to organize workforce and related services toward employers in those industries. The evaluation will combine quantitative and qualitative methods to examine whether this approach is a promising one for employers, jobseekers, and for the City’s employment and training system overall. The outcomes of this evaluation will inform the City of Chicago’s ongoing efforts, as well as those of workforce development policy makers nationally, to adopt sector-based, demand-driven approaches. The project is supported by the Chicago Workforce Board with funding from Joyce Foundation.
Day Labor and Worker Centers: CUED is continuing its research on the conditions found at informal hiring sites, as well as worker-center strategies to place a floor under wages and working conditions in day labor markets and other low-wage sectors of the economy. We will be conducting worker surveys in Chicago, Riverside, CA and Seattle to explore the dynamics of day labor markets in these turbulent economic times. The research will inform public policy as well as community programs designed to improve the working conditions of low-wage, contingent workers. This project is supported by a grant from the Ford Foundation.
Street Vendors: In collaboration with the Street Vendors Association, CUED is documenting the street vendors’ experience, assessing the organization’s needs and providing technical assistance on capacity building and strategic planning.
Women for Economic Justice (WEJ): CUED co-founded this organization to promote economic development projects for Latina immigrants. The organization works on financial literacy and its impact on women’s economic status, as well as the development of cooperatives as a means to improve women’s financial well-being.