SFPUC says local hiring, apprenticeship and LBE participation exceeded requirements on major capital projects

Ben Poole, director of workforce and economic program services at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, told commissioners the agency’s capital work has produced sustained local hiring and business participation.

"A $110,000,000 in wages and benefits have been earned by San Francisco residents and that money has gone back into the local economy," Poole said, adding that apprentice participation on the program is above the city requirement.

The presentation focused on the Sewer System Improvement Program (SSIP), the largest piece of the agency’s capital plan. Poole said local hiring rates on SSIP have risen from historical 20% requirements to a programwide outcome of about 34%, and that the agency is meeting a 50% resident-apprentice target with a reported 57% utilization on program work. He highlighted particular projects: Biosolids has about $400 million in awards to local business enterprises (LBEs), Headworks about $105 million, and the Southeast Community Facility project achieved 39% local hiring and 62% apprentice participation with roughly $26,500,000 awarded to LBEs on that contract.

Wendy Macy, the commission’s chief people officer, described outreach and hiring pilot work, including a community career fair for the Bayview and data-driven recruitment on platforms such as LinkedIn. Vincent "Olu" Olamayaku Fadenipo, a recruiter who described himself as a San Francisco native, outlined partnerships with City College and universities and a summer internship pilot that the agency said helps connect residents into pipelines for city employment.

Commissioners pressed for definitions and clarifications. Commissioner Levarone asked whether "local" meant just San Francisco or a broader service territory; Poole said definitions vary by project and that for projects outside the city, the agency uses ZIP-code–based regional boundaries. Commissioner Jamdar asked whether ‘‘resident apprentices’’ included pre-apprenticeship participants; staff said the data tracks registered, indentured apprentices through the city's prevailing-wage tracker and does not include pre-apprenticeship numbers in that metric.

Poole described a contractor-local participation requirement that obliges prime contractors to analyze scopes of work, identify marketable opportunities for LBEs and develop training or support plans where gaps exist. He cited the 1550 Evans project as an example where primes identified discrete scopes and coordinated with trade partners, unions, the Office of Economic and Workforce Development and community-based organizations to raise local outcomes.

Public comment on the presentation session was not taken; commissioners thanked staff for the work and asked for materials listing outreach contacts and program phone numbers that could be shared with job seekers and small businesses.

The commission did not take a separate vote on the presentation but used the discussion to approve related consent items later in the agenda.