Employment & Work Supports

Why Is This Important?

Why Is This Important?

Employers need skilled workers.  The COVID pandemic has exacerbated this need, as employers face staffing shortages in record numbers.  Meanwhile, potential workers face barriers related to training, education and soft skills to make them more likely to obtain and maintain employment.  Some potential workers also struggle with transportation, child care, appropriate clothing, or other needs that can support them in obtaining and maintaining employment.

How We Impact

Programs like SkillUP and the Financial Opportunity Center help CMCA members get the training, education, and soft skills they need to get and keep higher paying jobs through employment coaching.   Members are also connected to work supports, such as transportation and child care, depending on individual circumstances.

CMCA also partners with local employers to better understand their staffing needs and to connect interested workers with employment opportunities.  CMCA also focuses on workforce preparation skills in youth through partnerships with local schools through opportunities such as Community Connections and REALL simulations.  In addition, CMCA forms partnerships with local governments, chambers of commerce, workforce development groups, and other initiatives to help ensure that quality employment opportunities are available for all members of the community.

Interested in supporting CMCA in this endeavor?  Click here to find out how you can help.

Action Plan

FY22 Quarter 1 Updates

Key Updates:  

• Darin signed contract for funding for Employee Engagement Specialist - 12/31/21

On Target?  

Challenges:  

Strengths:  

Changes needed?  

Why Is This Important?

The COVID-19 pandemic underscored the need for child care as a work support.  Without child care services for elementary aged children and younger, many families were left unable to work or were forced into a difficult balancing act between working and ensuring the safety and supervision of their children.  Even before the pandemic, families faced rising child care costs ranging from $11 to $43 per day, depending on the child's age and the child care setting.  Families also face a scarcity of available child care slots in their communities.  In 2019, there were nearly 22,500 children under age 5 in CMCA's service area, and less than 5,500 of them attended public preschools.  Existing private child care programs simply do not have the capacity to meet the demand for additional child care slots.  Employers also recognize the urgent need for child care services.  Approximately 17% of Missouri employers cited lack of child care access as a barrier to expanding employment. 

Data Sources:

1. Missouri Kids Count. (2021). Area vs. Year by Measure, 2019.

2. U.S. Census Bureau. (2021). 2019: ACS 5-Year Estimates Data Profiles, Table DP05.

3. U.S. Census Bureau. (2021). 2019: ACS 5-Year Estimates Data Profiles, Table DP02.

4. Missouri Economic Research & Information Center. (2021). Missouri Workforce 2020 Employer Survey.

How We Impact

Head Start provides comprehensive child development and family support services to young children and their families, including health, mental health, nutrition, and education services.  By providing classroom-based child care services, families are able to work or attend school while their child receives developmentally appropriate education services to prepare them for school.  CMCA's Head Start program serves 11 counties across mid-Missouri.

The Missouri Women's Business Center provides resources, support, and networks for women seeking to grow or start their own businesses.  MoWBC is dedicated to providing small business development assistance to aspiring women, and offers a specific business curriculum for those interested in starting or expanding their own child care business.  

Additionally, CMCA networks with other child care programs and related businesses, particularly in Boone County.  This allows us to learn more about the issues faced by child care providers and help distribute information and resources to the child care community.

Interested in helping CMCA make an impact?  Click here to learn more.

Action Plan

FY22 Quarter 1 Updates

Key Updates:  

• Early Childhood Director provided links for childcare business research: https://mochildcareaware.org/starting-or-expanding-your-child-care-business/ and https://dese.mo.gov/childhood.

• Training coordinator has been hired. Still need to hire Child Care business coordinator.

• Developed Child Care Provider Recruitment group in Boone County

On Target?  

Challenges:  Several action items have been pushed back to FY22 due to COVID impacts and the effects on staffing & employment shortages.

Strengths:  

Changes needed?  

Why Is This Important?

In the CMCA service area, nearly 8,600 households report having no vehicle available.  Instead, 2.5% report walking to work, 10.3% report carpooling, and 1.7% report commuting to work by other means.  Less than 1% report using public transportation to get to work, most likely because of the lack of public transportation options in more rural communities.  Approximately 16% of Missouri employers report lack of transportation access as barrier to expanding employment.  Gaining access to reliable transportation is an important step toward reaching self-sufficiency.

Data Sources:

1. U.S. Census Bureau. (2021). 2019: ACS 5-Year Estimates Subject Tables, Table S2504.

2.  U.S. Census Bureau. (2021). 2019: ACS 5-Year Comparison Estimates Profiles, Table CP03.

3.  Missouri Economic Research & Information Center. (2021). Missouri Workforce 2020 Employer Survey.

How We Impact

CMCA Community Organizers build partnerships with local employers, transportation providers, city and county governments, chambers of commerce, and other local organizations to improve transportation options for low-income community members.

At the same time, coaches work with individual families to overcome transportation-related barriers through our Head Start, BRIDGE, and SkillUP programs, as well as though our Financial Opportunity Center.

Want to help find transportation solutions for your community?  Get involved in community action or donate to support our efforts.

Action Plan

FY22 Quarter 1 Updates

Key Updates:  

On Target?  

Challenges:  

Strengths:  

Changes needed?  

Action Plan

FY22 Quarter 1 Updates

Key Updates:  

On Target?  

Challenges:  

Strengths:  

Changes needed?  

Why Is This Important?

Entrepreneurship is widely recognized as an indicator of the overall economic health of a region.  It improves productivity, intensifies competition, spurs innovation, and creates jobs.  As new businesses enter the field, both new and existing businesses must compete for customers while implementing innovative solutions to increase productivity.  As new businesses expand and take on employees, they contribute to the labor market and provide employment to local workers.  For the entrepreneur, business ownership offers a path to self-sustained financial stability.

Interested in supporting CMCA in this endeavor?  Click here to find out how you can help.

Data Sources: 

1. Center for American Entrepreneurship. (2021).  "Why Is Entrepreneurship Important?"

2.  Innovations. (2021).  "How Is Entrepreneurship Good for Economic Growth?", Zoltan Acs, March 2006.

How We Impact

The Missouri Women's Business Center provides resources, support, and networks for women seeking to grow or start their own businesses.  MoWBC is dedicated to providing small business development assistance to aspiring women, with a focus on minority and low-to-moderate income-based entrepreneurs throughout Mid-Missouri. We do this through relevant programming and guided support to help them start their own business. From initial concepts to building a steady stream of economic resources, our mission is to break down the barriers that women in our community face when owning and operating a business.

Interested in helping CMCA make an impact in your community?  Click here to learn more.

Action Plan

FY22 Quarter 1 Updates

Key Updates:  

• WBC staffing restructure completed and training coordinator hired.

On Target?  

Challenges:  

Strengths:  

Changes needed?