LOS ANGELES COUNTY – To help improve access to jobs and provide a way out of homelessness, the Board of Supervisors has unanimously approved a motion by Supervisors Kathryn Barger and Sheila Kuehl that directs the Chief Executive Office to work with the United Way of Greater Los Angeles to administer a Homeless Employment Innovation Fund.
Resources will be awarded to providers and job centers to support programs that have a proven track record of successfully connecting individuals to employment opportunities.
“The county been successful in our efforts to connect highly acute individuals to benefits through Measure-H funded strategies, but there are portions of the homeless population who simply need a hand-up to reconnect to jobs and housing,” Supervisor Barger said. “This effort will provide employment opportunities to help curb the inflow into homelessness and help other individuals exit cycles of homelessness for good.”
According to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority’s 2018 Homeless Count data, 46% of the 9,205 people experiencing homelessness for the first time said it was due to a loss of employment or other financial reason.
In addition to establishing the Employment Innovation Fund, the County will work with local experts and research collectives, such as the Homelessness Policy Research Institute, to design, implement, and measure pilot programs based on localized solutions to employing homeless individuals and families in their area.