DeLauro Sounds Warning

New Haven’s U.S. Congresswoman came to town to warn job development programs like CT Works Career Center that the upcoming legislative session in D.C. could lead to drastic funding cuts. And people like Army Veteran Michael Gonzalez could lose part of the support system the center provides for out of work adults.

“It’s really tough to find work in this market right now,” said Gonzalez (pictured). ​“But the center has helped a lot, with resumes and sending me job listings, that sort of thing.” 

Gonzalez, who is 41 years old and trained in satellite technology, tapped away on a computer keyboard at the CT Works One-Stop Career Center in New Haven on Monday, looking for jobs. Meanwhile, U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro toured the facility.

“We should be focused on the interests of American workers,” DeLauro said as she stopped by the center Monday, talking to job searchers and popping in to computer labs like the one Gonzalez used. ​“Not on tax cuts for the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans.” DeLauro, a Democrat, was sounding a warning: Now that Republicans have taken control of the House of Representatives, big budget cuts loom. Conservatives in Congress are looking to cut budget levels to where they were before the recession began in 2008.

“And programs like this center are in real danger under the Republican budget,” she said.

DeLauro toured the facility with Bill Villano, executive director of Workforce Alliance, the policy and oversight organization responsible for the 20 CT Works Career Centers across Connecticut. The CT Works Centers across Connecticut provide access to computer labs, career counseling, skill development and resume workshops.

“People want jobs. They want to work,” she said. ​“And these programs provide valuable services to help them.”

Dramatic Increases

Kymbel Branch, manager of career development services for CT Works New Haven, said she’s noted a shift in people visiting the center. ​“People who used to have $100,000 salaries are now coming in for help finding work,” she said.

Branch said the change happened quickly, within the last two to three years. It corresponded, of course, with the recession. ​“We’ve had to expand the kinds of workshops we provide, and train our own staff to accommodate people with a different level of skill sets,” she said.

“We have seen over the last year or so dramatic increases in the number of people who visit these One-Stop centers,” Villano said during a press conference at the end of DeLauro’s visit. ​“In the last fiscal year, in four One-Stop Centers in our region we saw 19,000 unique individual customers that accounted for over 80,000 visits to the center.”

Villano (pictured) showed slides showing the effects of the recession on unemployment. The Connecticut economy lost a total of 98,100 jobs between March 2008 and December 2010, he said.

“And it’s going to be a long and slow climb out of this,” he said.

CT Works’ budget is around $18 million annually, up from around $12 – 13 million before the recession hit, said marketing director Robert Fort. ​“But the money we received from stimulus funding will run out by June 30th — the end of the fiscal year.”

CT Works is funded by the federal government. ​“We’re really in jeopardy in Congress,” said Fort. ​“People don’t get unemployed because they’re Republican or Democrats — they just get unemployed.”

But Fort said he doesn’t think the center will disappear under looming budget cuts. ​“It’s hard to imagine with this kind of economy,” he said. ​“But it’s about what level of services we can still provide.”

Dramatic Cuts

DeLauro took the podium at the press conference, getting into the politics of it all.

“We have a new majority in the House. And I don’t want to get into bickering,” she said, ​“But we have a whole lot of Republicans who want to roll back the level of spending to where it was before the recession hit.”

DeLauro said Republicans aren’t willing to cut the defense budget, but would be happy to cut education, food safety, veterans benefits and health care and the Workforce Investment Act — the 1998 piece of legislation that supports job training programs like CT Works.

“We could potentially lose $1.5 billion in funding for job training,” she said. ​“An estimated 1.5 billion Americans could lose access to programs like this.”

And this is not the moment to turn the lights out on CT Works by pulling away funding, she said. ​“Folks are flooding in the door because of the rough economic times.”

We hear discussion of economic recovery, said DeLauro. ​“But I’d love for all of those economists to come down here and experience this center, and the people using it, firsthand.”

Republican State Rep. Vincent Candelora questioned DeLauro’s statements. ​“I think it’s unfortunate that that’s the way Rep. DeLauro would characterize the issue. It’s not about a Republican or Democrat budget,” he said when contacted for comment after the event.

“Bottom line is we have to reduce spending because the money isn’t there anymore. There are a lot of good programs that may have to be eliminated, and there may be some bad ones. But to say the Republicans are doing it just brings in partisan politics.”

He also questioned the effectiveness of CT Works. ​“On paper it sounds great but I’m not sure that it really produces results,” he said. ​“I don’t hear from my constituents that they’re using these sorts of programs. Not to say that no one is, but anecdotally, people really are on the street pounding the pavement and being creative in their job searches, doing it on their own.”

Candelora said the budget would clearly need to be a bipartisan effort. ​“It’s really irresponsibly to cast any cuts onto the Republicans only.”

Looking for Work

Ray Barbaresi (pictured) Monday told the audience, and DeLauro, about his experience with the center. ​“I had a 30 year career with Sikorsky Aircraft before I was laid off,” he said. ​“It was a big shock and it was detrimental to my home and family.”

Barbaresi used the center for computer access and workshops. ​“They offered networking possibilities, guidance, any time I needed it. I could come down any time. It was very, very helpful,” he said.

Through their services, he was able to find a job with Milford Fabricating Co., Inc. ​“I’m able to keep my home now,” he said. ​“They gave me confidence — after being out of work so long you really lose that confidence. They gave it back to me.”

“It’s really a much needed agency that more people should get involved with,” he said.

While DeLauro toured the center and gave her press conference, Gonzalez checked the status of his student aid money. ​“I’m in my first semester of school,” he said, working full time towards a certificate in Automotive Technology at Gateway Community College.

Gonzalez, who served in the Army for nine years, recently lost his mother and is now living at a shelter for homeless veterans.

“It’s hard going back to school after 23 years,” he said. He’s now 41 and hoping to switch careers. ​“The Army trained me in satellite communications, but it’s harder to get work in those fields now.” He worked for Southern New England Telephone Company for some time, then was laid off. 

CT Works has helped him with job counseling and resume building. ​“They’re helping me look for part-time work at an auto body shop so I can pay for my expenses while I’m in school,” he said.

“It’s been tough,” he said. ​“But that’s life.”