OUR STORY
Mission
It is the mission of the Oakland Private Industry Council, Inc. to provide accessible, high- quality training and employment services to local residents and employers.
The Passion Behind our Work…
We do our work because we truly believe in our community. We know how important it is to connect well-trained and qualified candidates with the right opportunities. We pride ourselves in serving as a "one-stop" shop, providing a full range of support services to people looking for work, and to the businesses that employ them.
Our History
Founded in 1978 by Gay Plair Cobb, the Oakland Private Industry Council, Inc. has a history of innovation in workforce development. Our collaboration with the private industry councils of Richmond, and Alameda and Contra Costa counties resulted in the creation of an East Bay regional career center system. - EASTBAY Works, a consortium of One Stop centers serving clients throughout the two counties. We hold ourselves to high levels of accountability in maintaining this consortium with proven successes, yielding outstanding results for workers and businesses.
Since 1984, we have administered federally- and state-funded workforce development programs on behalf of the City of Oakland, first under the Job Training Partnership Act, and now under the Workforce Investment Act. The Oakland PIC has also been a pioneer in establishing innovative programs such as the Women-In-Skilled-Trades pre-apprenticeship training program in 1988, and the Cypress/Mandela pre-apprenticeship training program in 1993.
As a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization,. we are rooted in our community. We celebrate the beautiful diversity of the City of Oakland and have been intentional about making sure that our Staff and all-volunteer Board reflect our City. The Board is comprised of representatives from the private sector, community-based organizations, labor, and local government agencies.
