A Jacksonville nonprofit that helps nonviolent offenders get back into the workforce could soon be lining up more jobs for them.
Operation New Hope is laying the groundwork to create JaxPort Academy, a program that would train clients on skills needed by port-related companies.
“This could be a game changer for Jacksonville,” said Kevin Gay, CEO of Operation New Hope. “Just getting someone cleaned up and giving them a minimum wage job isn’t enough. They need to be able to earn a living wage.”
It was during a 2015 Leadership Jacksonville bus tour of the port that Gay came up with the idea.
The port is an economic engine, the group was told. But several thousand positions are unfilled because applicants don’t have the necessary skills.
It was a light-bulb-over-the-head moment for Gay.
“The port is the most logical and closest employer for the folks living in poverty in Northwest Jacksonville,” he said. “But there’s a reason they can’t connect to those jobs.”
The idea is still in the early stage. Gay is looking to build relationships with the port employers he hopes to serve.
Two surveys already have told him companies need more forklift operators and stevedores. The port authority is helping him arrange in-person meetings to learn more.
Gay is confident he can deliver a reliable workforce for port companies. Operation New Hope already has a track record of doing so for others.
For 16 years the agency has operated its Ready4Work program, something Gay describes as a “staffing company on steroids.”
The agency performs drug tests and background checks on its clients and puts them through a program that lasts four to 10 weeks. Clients learn to be on time, dress properly, have a good attitude and show a willingness to work.
Over the years, the program got clients work-ready. But, they still needed the skills for higher-paying jobs to create real stability.
Five years ago, Operation New Hope partnered with The Grimes Cos. to train people for warehouse jobs.
The 40-hour classroom program teaches basic concepts and terminology used in the logistics industry.
So far, the course has been taught 10 times, has a 95 percent graduation rate and a 92 percent placement rate at Grimes and other companies, Gay said.
Grimes President Mike O’Leary helped design the program. Since then, he’s hired about 130 of its graduates.
“It’s been a mutually beneficial relationship,” he said. “They’ve been great employees and we’re happy to have them on the team.”
Many of the workers hired by Grimes start out as general labor in packaging services.
Packaging is seasonal work and the company in the past struggled to keep the positions filled. Hiring the warehouse graduates lowered the turnover rate 80 percent, O’Leary said.
“The opportunity was a better fit and it worked out for both of us,” he said.
Some employees use the job as a launch pad to move up in the industry, either at other companies or at Grimes, as team leads, line leads, forklift operators and warehouse staff.
Having additional job skills before they’re hired would be even more of a plus, O’Leary said.
“We would test them before they were hired to do something like drive a forklift. But absolutely, if they can demonstrate those skills, it would give them a leg up,” he said.
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