De Blasio Administration Launches Hirenyc to Help New Yorkers Access Jobs Through The City's Purchases and Investments

October 27, 2015

New guidelines require businesses working on City contracts or development projects receiving City subsidies to take a first look at New Yorkers when hiring

NEW YORK— Delivering on a commitment outlined last November in the Career Pathways: One City Working Together workforce development plan, Mayor de Blasio today launched HireNYC, the largest and most impactful targeted hiring program in the nation, to help New Yorkers access training and jobs through the City’s purchases and investments. HireNYC will ensure that large contracts which make up over 90 percent of the City’s non-emergency spending, as well as construction and development investments, will help provide New Yorkers with access to thousands of jobs, ranging from jobs like security guards and administrative assistants to design coordinators and project managers.

“Every year the City of New York spends billions of dollars on everything from paper clips to playgrounds, plus additional investments in development. Through HireNYC we are making sure that more New Yorkers have a first shot at jobs related to City projects, and that employers have access to an expanded pool of talent,” said Mayor de Blasio.

Crafted in collaboration with the Law Department, the Mayor’s Office of Contract Services, agency partners, vendors, developers, industry groups, Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, and Council Members Brad Lander and Ritchie Torres, HireNYC both expands current targeted hiring programs and creates new guidelines to require employers receiving City contracts or working on development projects receiving City subsidies to work with the City’s public workforce system – Workforce1, a service provided by the NYC Department of Small Business Services. As part of the initiative, employers working on City projects will receive free recruitment assistance and access to an expanded pool of talent, and be required to consider qualified workers for open positions associated with those contracts.

To comply with federal and state laws, HireNYC requirements differ by subject area – primarily human services, goods and services, and development.

• Expansion of current programs: Certain human service agencies like Homeless Services (DHS), Children’s Services (ACS), and Human Resources (HRA) already mandate that for every $250,000 in contract value, an individual on cash assistance must be hired. Under HireNYC, this program will be expanded to include human service contracts at additional agencies such as Small Business Services (SBS), Aging (DFTA), Health (DOHMH), and Youth and Community Development (DYCD).

• New guidelines: Contractors selling goods and services to the City with contracts valued at $1 million or more will be required to post new positions with the City’s Workforce1 Career Centers and consider qualified Workforce1 candidates. 

• New and expanded: NYC Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) development projects currently contain hiring, retention, and advancement goals for permanent jobs created by tenants. As part of the City’s new HireNYC initiative, NYCEDC has expanded these requirements to include additional project types and strengthened compliance measures. Construction projects with costs of $1 million or more will also require developers, contractors and sub-contractors to post open construction positions with Workforce1 and consider qualified Workforce1 candidates. Housing Preservation and Development’s (HPD) affordable housing projects receiving $2 million or more in City subsidy will also require developers, contractors and sub-contractors to post open construction positions and to consider qualified Workforce1 candidates.

“With the release of the Career Pathways report last November, the City of New York set a new course for smarter and better workforce development.  Through HireNYC, we are demonstrating our own commitment as a City to those principles and making major investments to bring quality jobs to more New York Yorkers,” said Deputy Mayor for Housing and Economic Development Alicia Glen.

“Our city is home to one of the most vibrant and diverse job markets in the world, and HireNYC will help New Yorkers take advantage of the strong career opportunities New York City has to offer. Our communities need jobs, training, and expanded access to local contracts and development projects. Through specialized recruitment and hiring guidelines, this program will connect more New Yorkers—including women, minorities, and veterans—with opportunities to advance and succeed in our city's growing economy,” said City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito.

“The Jobs for New Yorkers Task Force called to better connect economic development with the creation of opportunity and access for all. HireNYC is a direct result of their recommendations and will leverage the City’s purchasing and development to have a double bottom line impact for New Yorkers and businesses who build, sell and grow here, said Katy Gaul-Stigge, Director of the NYC Office of Workforce Development.

“Leveraging the City’s billions of dollars in contracts and development deals to help connect job opportunities to New Yorkers looking for work is a powerful and direct way to address income inequality. With HireNYC, this Administration stands at the forefront of those efforts,” said Lisette Camillo, Director of the Mayor’s Office of Contract Services.

“Workforce1 Career Centers across the City help connect businesses to qualified talent and local jobseekers to training and good jobs,” said Andrew Schwartz, Acting Commissioner of the NYC Department of Small Business Services. “Through HireNYC, we will leverage the City’s purchasing power and development investments to ensure even more New Yorkers have access to jobs, and vendors working with the City have access to free recruitment services and quality employees.”

“By harnessing the power of City contracts, HireNYC will help shape the growth of our economy in a way that is more inclusive, balanced and that supports middle-class job sectors,” said NYCEDC President Maria Torres-Springer. “HireNYC is an invaluable tool in connecting New Yorkers to quality jobs in their communities and extending economic opportunity to New Yorkers of all backgrounds.”

“The launch of HireNYC will help leverage the dollars we spend through Housing New York to advance the City’s extensive workforce development efforts,” said HPD Commissioner Vicki Been. “We look forward to working with our development partners to continue connecting New Yorkers to quality job opportunities building and rehabbing the next generation of affordable housing.”

“HireNYC will strengthen our employment program initiatives by equipping low-income New Yorkers with real skills, education, training and the potential for meaningful employment,” said HRA Commissioner Steven Banks.  “These enhanced contract guidelines are a gateway to jobs and financial independence for thousands of New Yorkers.”

“Build it Back has executed on the Mayor’s call to hire locally and keep jobs in the communities most affected by our Sandy recovery work,” said Amy Peterson, Director of the Mayor’s Office of Housing Recovery. “With HireNYC, we are partnering with SBS to make our recovery opportunities and resources even easier to access.”

“New York City is constantly engaging in new projects and programs, resulting in billions of dollars of activities every year. Allowing New Yorkers to directly benefit from the jobs associated with these projects through this new initiative will provide thousands of secure employment opportunities throughout the City,” said Public Advocate Letitia James.

“When we put New York City’s purchasing power to work employing New Yorkers, we all benefit,” said Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer. “This is a win-win investment in raising up New Yorkers, and I look forward to seeing it pay dividends.”

“Even as the United States and the City of New York continue their recovery from the Great Recession, many families have not had an opportunity to share in the prosperity.  In parts of the Ninth Congressional District, which I am honored to represent in Washington, D.C., unemployment for young men currently exceeds fifty percent,” said Congresswoman Yvette Clarke. “HireNYC will provide an invaluable opportunity for individuals who want to work but cannot find a job to start their pursuit of the American Dream. I commend Mayor de Blasio, New York City Council Speaker Mark-Viverito, Council Member Torres, and Council Member Lander for their commitment to the aspirations of the people of New York City.”

“Considering local residents first for employment will strengthen the City’s economy and take advantage of the skills available in our backyard. I look forward to working with the Mayor, Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, Council Member Lander, and various city agencies to ensure HireNYC gives qualified New Yorkers access to City-funded job opportunities first, and introducing legislation to strengthen the program,” said Council Member Ritchie Torres.

“It is imperative that jobs created by City dollars, and especially when we make investments in economic development, actually strengthen our economy by providing employment opportunities to New Yorkers,” said Council Member Brad Lander. “I am proud to be working with Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, Council Member Ritchie Torres, the rest of our colleagues, and the Mayor on legislation to ensure HireNYC is a strong and permanent program.”

"Helping New Yorkers access training and jobs is essential to reducing poverty, increasing upward mobility, and creating shared prosperity in our city,” said Jennifer Jones Austin, CEO and Executive Director of the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies. “HireNYC will do this by ensuring that large contracts, as well as construction and development investments provide New Yorkers with key entry points to thousands of jobs.”

“The BTEA looks forward to continuing to work with city officials on ways to offer new employment opportunities to New Yorkers as a way of strengthening and growing our city's middle class,” said Louis J. Coletti, President & CEO of the Building Trades Employers’ Association.

“Working with HireNYC has been an honor and pleasure for Kings Theatre.  They continue to help us find local candidates, who are pre-screened and excited to be part of our team.  Hiring quality employees is integral for the success of any business, and HireNYC helps us achieve that goal,” said Jason Sandoval, Associate Director of the Kings Theatre.

“The Human Services Council applauds the Mayor for utilizing the City’s spending power to access thousands of jobs for New Yorkers,” said Michelle Jackson, Associate Director & General Counsel of the Human Services Council. “The nonprofit human services sector has always worked closely with the City to provide job training and employment services to provide paths to opportunities and appreciates an expansion that looks at other industries as well. The human services sector looks forward to continuing our partnership to better link New Yorkers to critical employment opportunities.”

“HireNYC is an important initiative. The city’s contractors have always represented a possibility for new and good jobs—full time and at livable wages. That many of these positions are becoming available to jobseekers through the Workforce1 Centers benefits both parties,” said Joseph McDermott, Executive Director of the Consortium for Worker Education.

“Encouraging interest and workplace participation in science, technology, engineering and math is a core value for the engineering community,” said Jay Simson, President of American Council of Engineering Companies New York. “We applaud the Mayor’s HireNYC initiative.” 

The new HireNYC requirements are in addition to the Hurricane Sandy Housing Recovery requirements, announced in October, 2014. All new Build it Back contracts, regardless of value, are required to submit job postings to and interview candidates from the Sandy Recovery Workforce1 system. All vendors are encouraged to employ 20 percent Sandy-impacted residents on their projects. NYC Build it Back construction contracts over $300,000 and procured through the Department of Design and Construction require contractors and subcontractors to include apprenticeship agreements and are subject to the Outer Borough Residential Project Labor Agreement.

As part of this administration’s commitment to leverage City contracts to help increase opportunities for all New Yorkers, in June 2015 the Mayor also announced a deal on several new project labor agreements with the Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater New York (BCTC). This deal will help increase opportunities for minority and women-owned businesses in construction projects, and also for women, new high school graduates of the City’s public schools, returning veterans, and employees of certified minority and women-owned business enterprises (M/WBEs). In line with HireNYC’s goals, for trade positions, the PLA/MOU agreement increases the percentage of direct entry to apprenticeship opportunities from target populations from 45% to 55% to give more New Yorkers a better shot at good union jobs. Training investments will support recognized pre-apprenticeship programs for targeted populations. 

The City’s network of Workforce1 Career Centers connects employers to a skilled workforce and provides training and placement services to jobseekers. Centers are located throughout the five boroughs and provide businesses with free recruitment services, and jobseekers with a full array of employment services including job placement, skills training, career advisement, and job search counseling.

Several resources are available to New Yorkers looking for jobs. Visit www.nyc.gov/workforce1  for a list of Workforce1 Career Center locations throughout the City, and to sign up for the Workforce1 Career Bulletin, a weekly email featuring the latest job openings available through the centers. New Yorkers can also find valuable resources online through the Workforce1 Career Blog, and by following Workforce1 on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

HireNYC includes an online portal to support reporting across agencies and make it easy for employers to interface with the City. Employers can use the portal to register, submit open positions, and track compliance. Enrollment is required for some of these programs and is currently available at: http://www.nyc.gov/html/sbs/wf1/html/contact/targeted_hiring.shtml.