The AFL-CIO Working for America Institute is an arm of the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organization (AFL-CIO), the largest federation of labor unions in the United States. The Working for American Institute promotes workforce training and apprenticeship programs. The organization describes itself as a national workforce intermediary organization that promotes union organizing and programs by engaging with the federal government, labor unions, and employers. ¹

The organization receives grant money from the federal government and operates a multi-year contract valued at approximately $11 million with the U.S. Department of Labor to fund the organization’s intermediary programs that aim to expand the utilization of apprenticeships in the United States. ²

Overview

The Working for America Institute was founded by the AFL-CIO in 1969 as the Human Resources Development Institute. Since its inception, the organization has worked with labor unions and the U.S. Department of Labor to promote union-approved workforce training and apprenticeship programs. The organization holds a contract with the U.S. Department of Labor to act as a multiple industry intermediary, promoting training and apprenticeship programs across various industries that are heavily influenced by labor unions, such as manufacturing and hospitality. ³

Despite not reporting any lobbying activity, the organization promotes various state and federal public policies around workforce intermediary groups and support increased public funding for workforce training programs. One publication from the organization lists several state-level programs that provide funding to union-backed training organizations and includes left-of-center recommendations for expanding such programs to be used by policymakers. ⁴

The institute also works at the state and local level to establish workforce intermediary partnerships between employers and labor unions and encourage the adoption of union-backed training programs by employers. The organization has helped broker agreements between restaurant and hotel workers in Boston and Los Angeles and their local unions, as well as an agreement between Kaiser Permanente and its employees’ union. ⁵

The Institute organizes the Industrial Manufacturing Technician Apprenticeship Program, its flagship program that is backed by the U.S. Department of Labor. The program provides 18 months and 3,000 hours of training to workers on how to assemble, operate, monitor, and control production equipment. ⁶

Funding

The Working for America Institute has received several millions of dollars in federal grants and contracts awarded since 2016. ⁷ The organization received a grant from the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration in March of 2020 that totaled $6 million to fund the Institute’s work. ⁸

In addition to other smaller federal grants, the organization has held a contract which was last renewed in 2016 with the Department of Labor to expand the use of workforce intermediary groups. As of 2020, the contract had a potential value of $11 million, with over $5 million already having been allocated since 2016. ⁹ The organization has stated that the grant was meant to expand apprenticeship programs in the manufacturing and hospitality industries. Through the contract, Working for America Institute has collaborated with other left-of-center, union-affiliated groups, such as the AFL-CIO Industrial Union Council, and local groups including the Boston Education Skills and Training Corporation (BEST), the Los Angeles Hotel Training Academy (HTA), and the Pennsylvania Keystone Development Partnership (KDP). ¹⁰

1. “About Us.” Working for America Institute. Accessed February 4, 2021. https://www.workingforamerica.org/about-us
2. “The Afl-Cio Working for America Institute. Inc. WAI.” GovTribe. Accessed February 4, 2021. https://govtribe.com/vendors/the-afl-cio-working-for-america-institute-dot-inc-dot-wai-5zq43#related-federal-contract-awards-table
3. “U.S. Department of Labor Multiple Industry Intermediary Contract.” Working for America Institute. Accessed February 4, 2021. https://www.expandapprenticeship.org/us-department-labor-multiple-industry-intermediary-contract
4. “Investing in Workforce Intermediaries.” Working for America Institute. Accessed February 4, 2021. https://jfforg-prod-new.s3.amazonaws.com/media/documents/BuildNewLaborInt.pdf
5. “Advancing Equity Through Workforce Intermediary Partnerships.” AFL-CIO. November 13, 2017. Accessed February 4, 2021. https://aflcio.org/reports/advancing-equity-through-workforce-intermediary-partnerships
6. “Industrial Manufacturing Technician Apprenticeship Program.” Working for America Institute. Accessed February 4, 2021. http://industrial-manufacturing-technician-apprenticeship.hq.afl-cio.serenity-v1.aflcio.org/#!/
7. “The Afl-Cio Working for America Institute. Inc. WAI.” GovTribe. Accessed February 4, 2021. https://govtribe.com/vendors/the-afl-cio-working-for-america-institute-dot-inc-dot-wai-5zq43#related-federal-contract-awards-table
8. “Project Grant HG343552060A11.” GovTribe. Accessed February 4, 2021. https://govtribe.com/award/federal-grant-award/project-grant-hg343552060a11
9. “Definitive Contract DOLETA16C0115.” GovTribe. Accessed February 4, 2021. https://govtribe.com/award/federal-contract-award/definitive-contract-doleta16c0115
10. “U.S. Department of Labor Multiple Industry Intermediary Contract.” Working for America Institute. Accessed February 4, 2021. https://www.expandapprenticeship.org/us-department-labor-multiple-industry-intermediary-contract