The challenge of inclusive human capital development : lessons from Boston's healthcare sector

Abstract

The pathways to enter and move up in the American labor market look very different today than fifty years ago, in part due to the erosion of traditional coordination between employers, workers, and training providers. Navigating this new reality disproportionately weighs on individuals facing limited access to education and additional barriers to employment. Some cities have experimented with sector-specific workforce development strategies to address these challenges. Using the healthcare sector in Boston as a case study, this thesis traces the evolution of one such strategy and discusses the impact of these programs on the employment outcomes for participants. Four decades of work has resulted in meaningful changes in the internal processes of some large employers and has broadened the conversation around the need to address labor market challenges. Yet these efforts have led to limited improvements in post-training employment outcomes for low-skilled individuals.