Our team at the Housing Federation has heard the concerns of the Resident Service Coordinators and Supportive Housing Operators and have adapted well to their needs. We are teamed up with the Corporation for Supportive Housing (CSH) and LeSar Development to host a series of COVID-19 response related webinars. These have taken place since March and will continue throughout the year. Our aim has been to do two webinars per month and this has been a success. On average, 150 professionals in both affordable housing and supportive housing attend each session. However, in the month of July we were only able to host one.

July’s webinar focused on economic inequality impacts that went beyond COVID-19. Introductions for the webinar and Daniel Enemark were given by our own Laura Nunn and CSH’s Tom Stubberud. Daniel Enemark was our guest presenter. He was introduced as someone who desires to connect San Diegans to meaningful work in his role as Senior Economist, with the San Diego Workforce Partnership (SDWP). The SDWP is the workforce development board for San Diego county. This means that they stand between those who desire jobs and those who are seeking workers. His main goal in the SDWP is to understand and counteract structural inequality in San Diego’s labor force. This, is what his presentation focused on. His presentation reported on examined trends and data regarding workforce development, career pathways, and unemployment benefits. He sought to answer questions like, where do new employment opportunities exist for tenants and those we help and how do we support tenant career development? Or, what jobs are available, reliable, and profitable for the people that we serve? He pointed to resources for resident service workers and those they serve that can be found on the Work Force Website, like an income calculator and job board.

He also spent time painting a picture for how current economic trends have been impacted by race and gender inequality. Especially from the viewpoint of San Diego. But, he also spoke on the Work Force has programs in place to help the disparity that has historically been found and gave practical steps for the viewer. A recording of the webinar can be found here.