Authors of a new report and experts in workforce development discuss leveraging data in Greater Boston with an eye towards an equitable economic recovery.
"Boston is the 11th largest U.S. city and has the eighth largest metro GDP. Were it not for racial gaps in our workforce and economy, that GDP would be $44.5 billion bigger. But that staggering figure is just one cost of racism in Greater Boston.
The GDP gap was one of a number of powerful stats highlighted in Skillworks forum hosted by the Boston Foundation, entitled Advancing Workforce Equity in Boston: A Blueprint for Action. The event followed up a full-length report of the same name released in January by the National Equity Atlas (a research partnership between PolicyLink and the USC Equity Research Institute), shaped and informed by contributions of the SkillWorks Equity Working Group. At the forum, researchers and thinkers in the field convened to share and discuss the report’s data, which corroborated both qualitative observations and personal experiences of panelists.
The Project on Workforce is partnering with the Boston Foundation on inter-institutional collaboration in Greater Boston to advance workforce equity and prepare for the future of work. Project on Workforce Director Rachel Lipson served on the panel, sharing reflections and recommendations for priority areas for action in the city.