Current workforce innovator partners
The Toronto Workforce Funder Collaborative invests in workforce innovators to answer questions related to equity, systems change, and partnerships in workforce systems. Through their work, we hope to gain a better understanding of demand-driven approaches and employer engagement strategies that lead to strong and sustainable program models.
The John Howard Society of Ontario is a not-for-profit organization of 19 local offices dedicated to effective, just and humane responses to crime and its causes. The purpose of this grant is to support John Howard Society of Ontario design an employer engagement toolkit for job developers to help them place formerly incarcerated individuals in jobs. The second year (2025) will focus on the implementation of this toolkit.
The Toronto Shelter Network connects and supports Toronto’s homelessness service providers. The purpose of this grant is to support Toronto Shelter Network create/test a workforce development initiative that aims to employ individuals with lived experience of homelessness or housing precarity within the shelter network.
Baby Ghosts Studio Development Fund, a non-profit whose mission is to advance co-operative and worker-centric labour models in the Canadian interactive digital arts sector. This funding will support early-stage game development studios led by marginalized founders through mentorship, workshops, and community engagement. The initiative aims to foster worker-centric and cooperative game development studios in GTA.
The Black Women’s Institute for Health, a non profit and charity registered in Toronto whose mission is to advocate for the health and survival of Black women. They do this by focusing on all social determinants of health and amplifying the struggles, echoing the silenced cries, and mobilizing relentlessly for tangible change. The Pathways to Leadership for Black Women in Healthcare initiative is designed to address and dismantle the systemic barriers that hinder Black women from ascending to leadership roles within the healthcare sector in the Greater Toronto Area. Through comprehensive qualitative and quantitative data collection, stakeholder engagement, and the development of strategic frameworks, this project aims to identify and address these barriers. The ultimate goal is to create an inclusive and equitable environment in healthcare leadership, ensuring that Black women have the support and opportunities they need to thrive and lead effectively.
Ontario Association of Youth Employment Centres (First Work), a leading membership organization bringing together the best providers of employment services, business leadership, academia, and government committed to advancing healthy employment ecosystems. Ontario’s workforce development sector is vital for supporting jobseekers and employers but faces challenges like overcapacity, underfunding, and lack of support for community service providers. This research proposal seeks to address these issues by launching a transformative initiative to identify key determinants of a healthy Workforce Development (WD) Ecosystem. The goal is to foster collaboration, create practical solutions, and produce actionable insights that drive systemic change, enhancing the effectiveness of workforce development services across Ontario.
The Neighbourhood Group Community Services is a social agency serving more than 45,000 low-income people and families in 30 locations across Toronto. Through this funding, the primary goal is to develop a comprehensive employer engagement capacity-building training to address the systemic workforce development problem within the Employment Ontario (EO) sector. These trainings and resources will serve as a guide for fostering stronger relationships between EO providers, employers, and other stakeholders, with the ultimate aim of creating sustainable talent pipelines and improving job seeker outcomes.