“A Good Job in Hawaiʻi” Framework
Dear Readers,
In 2021 and 2022, in collaboration with Guild Consulting, the Hawaiʻi Workforce Funders Collaborative (HWFC) conducted foundational research by speaking with supply side (training providers) and demand side (employers and industry representatives). What we discovered was both concerning but not necessarily surprising: few jobs in Hawaiʻi offer wages sufficient for residents to support themselves and their families. In fact, among the 755 occupations within Hawaiʻi's industries, only 26 provide more than 100 annual job openings and a wage that can sustain a resident and one other family member. Seeing this stark reality in numbers made it clear that merely directing learners down existing pathways may not lead to the desired outcomes because, simply put, there are not enough good jobs to build pathways to.
This realization prompted a shift in our approach. We recognized the need to explore a yet-to-be-uncovered narrative. If the "good jobs" as commonly defined do not exist yet, then we have a unique opportunity to learn and help define another definition that raises up Hawaiʻiʻs communities’ voices along with those of industry, employers, education, and policymakers. We envision a healthy economy in Hawaiʻi, built upon recognition of a symbiotic relationship between job seekers, training providers, and employers, centered on a model of work that aligns with the needs, values, and motivations of Hawaiʻi residents. These “good jobs” will both compensate workers at levels that allow current residents to remain in Hawaiʻi and provide opportunities to use their gifts and talents in a way that makes Hawaiʻi a better place to live for everyone. As you read this report and begin to envision what such a future could look like, notice how conversations with communities across the state begin to align around these common themes. Suddenly such a future seems more within reach.
This report would not have been possible without the invaluable contributions of the Islander Institute and the Community Based Organizations across our state – Vibrant Hawaiʻi, Men of Paʻa, Hui No Ke Ola Pono, Kauaʻi Economic Development Board, KEY Projects, and We Are Oceania. What you will find within these pages is the result of conversations with six diverse communities spanning Hawaiʻi Island, Kauaʻi, Maui, and Oʻahu. These conversations paint a vivid picture of what good jobs—and more importantly, what good work—could look like.
While the clear foundation of a framework has emerged from these initial conversations, we want to emphasize that this is the beginning of the conversation. There is still so much more to learn and more relationships that will need to be built to bring the vision outlined in this report to life.
Our next steps include:
Continuing to engage with communities to develop meaningful metrics that measure access to and barriers to good jobs, ensuring these metrics accurately represent the communities being measured.
Developing publicly available data tools and data sense-making white papers that enable stakeholders across the state to explore communities, demographics, and industries to identify both the current opportunities as well as the barriers to good work.
In November 2023, we will be partnering with group of stakeholders from Community-Based Organizations, local American Job Centers, Higher Education, and Industry to launch the Hawaiʻi Worker Equity Lab—a collaborative effort rooted in human centered design principles to identify, prototype, and implement solutions that will break down existing barriers that currently prevent certain groups of workers from accessing good jobs.
We also plan on creating user-specific playbooks based on this research to help put this framework into action, but we need your help! Are you a training provider that has already tested or developed ways to deliver what workers need to succeed? Are you an employer that like many of us had to adapt your policies during the pandemic but have memorialized some of these changes to continue to attract and retain team members going forward? Do you work for a company that is getting it right? Or do you just have ideas or questions about how you might incorporate some of these ideas into your work? We would love to hear from you.
We recognize that for most of us, incorporating some of these ideas into our work will be a change from how things have happened in the past. But we know that in order to create equitable opportunity for the types of good jobs described in this report, that we each have a role to play. By taking the time to read the stories of workers across the state contained in this report, you become part of the conversation. By connecting with us and sharing your ideas and feedback, you become part of the solution.
Thank you,
Matt Stevens
Executive Director, Hawaiʻi Workforce Funders Collaborative
Kelly Miyamura & Alex Harris
Hawaiʻi Workforce Funders Collaborative Steering Committee Co-Chairs
