Working Waterfront Coalition supports economy, transportation and lives

The Workforce Waterfront Coalition graduated its second cohort of graduates last month, the program providing a boost to the region's maritime industry and those participating in the program.

The graduation at Mare Island was attended by MTC staff, including Executive Director Andrew Fremier. MTC has provided an innovative transit subsidy that has provided trainees with Clipper BayPass to more easily attend classes.

The Working Waterfront Coalition (WWC) is a first-of-its-kind San Francisco Bay Area industry-led workforce development initiative aimed at building a workforce pipeline to address the shortage of maritime professionals crucial for the operation and expansion of water transport.

Bobby Winston, the CEO of Bay Crossings, and Bill Elliott, the CEO of Bay Ship & Yacht, created the WWC having identified the need for skilled workers in the waterfront trades. 

The program began April 2024 with state grants awarded to Alameda and Contra Costa county Workforce Development Boards.

“WWC is an industry-led initiative focused on developing the next generation of waterfront workers," said Sal Vaca, Program Director at WWC. "Our robust partnership includes maritime employers, labor unions, Workforce Development Boards and community organizations.  Our collective work is helping to reinvigorate the maritime industry and will help position the Bay Area as a major player in bringing back shipbuilding”
 

The coalition is made up of employer partners from leading organizations from shipyards, tugboat companies, ferry service providers, ports and more to provide job opportunities to well-trained program participants. 

The program addresses a critical need within minority communities, where access to high-quality employment opportunities may be limited. By focusing efforts on these communities, WWC aims to foster economic empowerment and promote diversity within the maritime workforce.

WWC recruits participants through partnerships with community-based organizations, county workforce development boards and probation departments in Alameda, Contra Costa, Solano and San Francisco counties and others, and WWC holds training sessions focused on the marine trades, water transport and personal and professional development. 

Throughout the training process, WWC provides a full suite of wrap-around services to ensure the success of the program’s participants, including a stipend to cover general expenses, transport to and from classes, access to child-care, nutrition assistance, legal assistance, and more. Finally, once a training session is complete, WWC assists participants in securing well-paying jobs via first source hiring agreements with Bay Area maritime employers.

This last cohort got to experience employer-based on-site training at Bay Ship & Yacht in Alameda.

The WWC work comes at a time when U.S. Congressman John Garamendi (D-Fairfield, Davis, Yuba City) is supporting the "Ships for America Act" to bring back shipbuilding to the Bay Area, holding a press conference on the issue in March on Mare Island.