Local hiring
Encyclopedia
Local hiring is a goal or requirement to hire people who live close to the place of work. This aim is often more specifically structured as a requirement for contractors awarded certain types of publicly-funded projects to recruit a certain proportion of the people working on the project from a particular area.
Proponents of local hiring ordinances claim the practice:
The environmental benefit of local hiring comes principally because employing a greater percentage of local workers leads to shorter commutes and a greater ability to walk, bike, and take public transit to work. This results in reductions in air pollution
, including greenhouse gases.
Local hiring is an aspect of the relocalization
movement. By mandating that contractors hire locally, residents can work closer to home, spending less time traveling to and from their jobs. As Robert D. Putnam notes in Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community, each additional ten minutes spent commuting leads to a ten percent decline in all areas of civic engagement. Therefore, local hiring may be one tool municipalities can use to increase community involvement.
The City and County of San Francisco Board of Supervisors
passed the strongest local hiring ordinance in the United States on December 14, 2010. This legislation, sponsored by Supervisor John Avalos
, requires 20% of construction workers on city projects in 2011-12 to live locally, rising to 50% by 2017. 50% of apprentices on these projects must live locally. The ordinance has per-trade requirements set at half the overall level (e.g. by 2017, 25% of workers in any trade must live locally). The local hire requirement replaced a previous goal-based approach that had proved ineffective, with only 20% of hours on city project being worked by San Francisco residents in the period July 2009 to late 2010. The new ordinance became law on March 25, 2011.
Proponents of local hiring ordinances claim the practice:
- ensures that tax dollars are invested back into the local economy
- reduces the environmental impact of commuting
- fosters community involvement
- preserves local employment opportunities in construction
The environmental benefit of local hiring comes principally because employing a greater percentage of local workers leads to shorter commutes and a greater ability to walk, bike, and take public transit to work. This results in reductions in air pollution
Air pollution
Air pollution is the introduction of chemicals, particulate matter, or biological materials that cause harm or discomfort to humans or other living organisms, or cause damage to the natural environment or built environment, into the atmosphere....
, including greenhouse gases.
Local hiring is an aspect of the relocalization
Localism (politics)
Localism describes a range of political philosophies which prioritize the local. Generally, localism supports local production and consumption of goods, local control of government, and promotion of local history, local culture and local identity...
movement. By mandating that contractors hire locally, residents can work closer to home, spending less time traveling to and from their jobs. As Robert D. Putnam notes in Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community, each additional ten minutes spent commuting leads to a ten percent decline in all areas of civic engagement. Therefore, local hiring may be one tool municipalities can use to increase community involvement.
The City and County of San Francisco Board of Supervisors
San Francisco Board of Supervisors
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is the legislative body within the government of the City and County of San Francisco, California, United States.-Government and politics:...
passed the strongest local hiring ordinance in the United States on December 14, 2010. This legislation, sponsored by Supervisor John Avalos
John Avalos
John Avalos is a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors representing District 11. The district consists of Crocker-Amazon, Excelsior, Ingleside, Oceanview, and the Outer Mission districts. He was elected on November 4, 2008 in the 2008 San Francisco elections and took office on January...
, requires 20% of construction workers on city projects in 2011-12 to live locally, rising to 50% by 2017. 50% of apprentices on these projects must live locally. The ordinance has per-trade requirements set at half the overall level (e.g. by 2017, 25% of workers in any trade must live locally). The local hire requirement replaced a previous goal-based approach that had proved ineffective, with only 20% of hours on city project being worked by San Francisco residents in the period July 2009 to late 2010. The new ordinance became law on March 25, 2011.