Workforce initiatives
We create job opportunities for and increase the participation of underrepresented communities in the labor force of our contractors and create training and skill improvement opportunities on our projects where possible. CTA Diversity Programs’ Workforce Initiatives unit works collaboratively with the building trades to achieve the various workforce goals on CTA contracts.
Workforce Development Goals
Workforce development goals instituted on our construction and professional service contracts most commonly include:
A percentage of the total labor hours of a contract should be attained by hiring and utilizing apprentices from the signatory unions pursuant to the terms of the Multi-Project Labor Agreement.
A percentage of the total labor hours in a contract should be attained by hiring and utilizing Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) workers or Section 3 Workers. WIOA workers will be recognized for credit up to five (5) years after they are WIOA verified.
A percentage of the total labor hours in a contract should be attained by hiring and utilizing EDA residents. See the lists of EDA zip codes:
Construction Talks Series
Individuals interested in a career within construction should look forward to the CTA’s Construction Talks Series to gain insight into various opportunities within construction. All webinars from this series are recorded and available for viewing on our YouTube Page: CTA Doors Opening.
Current Workforce Projects
Elevating Futures Scholarship is a $250,000 scholarship fund available to low-income students pursuing undergraduate degrees in STEM that are enrolled in the Chicago Scholars Program. It is awarded to 3 students annually in the late Spring.
The Red-Purple Modernization Program is the largest capital investment in CTA history that will modernize CTA train service on the Red, Purple and Brown lines.
Tracks-to-Trades is an educational series led by our RPM Prime Contractor, Walsh-Fluor. The series showcases the various non-trade and trade related careers available through the construction industry to high school students and is administered to participating CPS CTE High Schools and Programs.
CTA will be constructing a new non-revenue producing maintenance facility adjacent to the 63rd street rail yard in the Woodlawn neighborhood on the South side. Construction is expected to begin in Q2 2022 and will be led by the General Contractor Clark Construction.
Workforce Partners
The Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership (The Partnership) is the non-profit umbrella organization that operates the largest public workforce system in the country. As the designated administrator of federal workforce development funding for the City of Chicago and Cook County, The Partnership oversees a network of more than 90 community-based organizations, American Job Centers, satellite sites, and sector-driven centers. The Partnership specifically assists CTA with fulfilling workforce opportunities for workforce goals on the RPM project.
HIRE360’s mission is to expand employment opportunities through recruiting, training, and placement assistance; invest capital in helping minority- and women-owned businesses grow and thrive; connect area youth, underrepresented populations and local residents with job inspiration and opportunities; and model socially responsible hiring and supply chain accountability in Chicago and beyond. HIRE360 specifically assists CTA with fulfilling workforce opportunities for workforce goals on the RPM project.
Workforce Reports
See reports and regulatory information.