![A local organization is starting a new partnership with the city of Cleveland Heights, to try to fill the local talent gap. [Andriy Blokhin/shutterstock]](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ecd4ad7/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3000x2000+0+0/resize/840x560!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Flegacy%2Fuploads%2F2022%2F7%2F07%2Fshutterstock_1840085851.jpg)
The COVID-19 pandemic has triggered one of the worst job crises in America since the great depression. Record high unemployment plagued the early stages of the pandemic, with 9.6 million Americans losing their jobs solely due to pandemic challenges in 2020, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
In 2021, the reintroduction of jobs as vaccines became more available, allowed many Americans to return to work or find new and better paying jobs -- we've all heard of the Great Resignation -- but many workers have not returned to the job market, including some women who left due to a lack of childcare options, and older adults who opted for early retirement.
This has caused a major problem for many businesses.
The US Chamber of Commerce reports that businesses of every size and industry across nearly every state is in need of more workers. There are 11.4 million vacant jobs and only 6 million unemployed workers in the country who could potentially fill them.
A local organization called VERGE is starting a new partnership with Cleveland Heights Councilwoman Davida Russell, to try to address this issue. They have launched a summer youth development program that provides young adults the tools they need to begin their careers and directly connects them to businesses in need of employees.
This hour, we'll start by learning more about this partnership.
Then, we'll meet three top leaders in Northeast Ohio from Crain's Cleveland Business's annual Women of Note list.
Note: An earlier version of this article stated that there was a partnership between VERGE and the city of Cleveland Heights. This has been edited for clarity to reflect that the partnership is between VERGE and Cleveland Heights Councilwoman Davida Russell.
-Lisa Evans, co-founder and CEO, VERGE
-Davida Russell, Council Member, City of Cleveland Heights
-Kaylon Ferguson, former VERGE participant
-Carey Jaros, CEO, GOJO/Purell
-Habeebah Rasheed Grimes, CEO, Positive Education Program
-Marika Shioiri-Clark, Designer, SOSHL Studio
