The California Workforce Development Board (CWDB) is the Governor’s agent for the development, oversight, and continuous improvement of California’s workforce development system. The CWDB assists the Governor in setting and guiding workforce development policy, developing innovative initiatives through statewide programs, and expanding the High Road vision through its field branch. The workforce development system is comprised of 45 Local Workforce Development Areas (Local Area), each with its own business-led Local Workforce Development Board (Local Board). These Local Boards work together with the state and their local Chief Elected Officials to oversee the delivery of workforce services relevant to their residents and businesses. The California Unemployment Insurance Code §14200 – §14531 and the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) give authority to CWDB to carry out the tasks associated with furthering a High Road workforce system. Learn more about the CWDB in the About Us section.
California and the CWDB are committed to a High Road vision for the state’s workforce development system that embodies the principles of job quality, worker voice, equity, and environmental sustainability. Implementing this vision through policy, programs, and other practices will benefit workers, job-seekers, and industry as well as the state’s workforce development system.
Featured Workforce Initiatives
High Road
High Road Training Partnerships (HRTP) and High Road Construction Careers (HRCC) a systemic approach to industry-based workforce development addressing critical issues of equity, job quality, worker voice, and environmental sustainability.
CAAL Skills
An interagency and multi-departmental data-sharing and program evaluation initiative that uses detailed information from federal and state-funded workforce, education, and human services programs to measure participation and associated outcomes for program participants.
Regional CA
Work to stimulate economic growth, create jobs and build the talent needed to increase income mobility and regional prosperity through collaboration among multiple workforce systems and bringing workforce leaders together.
Prison to Employment
Creates opportunities through collaborative partnerships with state workforce programs and the state corrections systems so that formerly incarcerated and justice-involved individuals can successfully reenter society and the labor force.
Workforce Accelerator Fund
Funds projects that design, develop, and implement programs that accelerate employment and provide access to workforce services and employment opportunities for targeted groups and disadvantaged populations.
HIRE
Increases employment opportunities and job mobility for formerly incarcerated and justice-involved individuals through partnerships with reentry-focused organizations that provide training, reskilling and upskilling, and supportive services.
Breaking Barriers
Supplements existing workforce and education programs by providing services to target populations who are often not eligible for other state and federal programs in an effort to address disparities in the labor market.
Coming Soon
Initiative Coming Soon
In the Spotlight
San Diego, CA – The San Diego Nonprofit Consortium, led by Good For Others Foundation, is addressing workforce shortages in the nonprofit sector by preparing individuals for hard-to-fill roles like Program Specialists and Program Managers. Through their CWDB-funded Nonprofit Sector High Road Training Program, they support unemployed, underemployed, and incumbent workers in building leadership skills to advance their careers. Learn more about Good For Others.
CWDB JOB OPENINGS
Review our available positions below, and visit the CalCareers webpage to learn more about how to apply for a state job.
New to the State – Review the 3 Steps To A State Job webpage and be sure to complete the exam/assessment and state application before applying for this position.
Are you passionate about ending poverty and inequality? Are you motivated to address the climate crisis and social injustice while working on economic and workforce development? If so, you may be a great fit for one of our open positions at the California Workforce Development Board (CWDB).
The CWDB is recognized nationally as a progressive and experimental state workforce department, charting a path to a High Road economy and approach to workforce development grounded in the principles of social equity, environmental sustainability, and resilience and quality jobs. Over the past decade, the CWDB’s budget, programs, and staff have grown exponentially using federal and state workforce funding to pilot new sector-based workforce initiatives and develop policy solutions that address the quality and accessibility of jobs in addition to training.
Click Below To View Current CWDB Job Opportunities:
EXECUTIVE TEAM
No jobs openings are currently available in this branch
EQUITY CLIMATE & JOBS FIELDS TEAM
No jobs openings are currently available in this branch
POLICY IMPLEMENTATION & ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT TEAM
No jobs openings are currently available in this branch
POLICY, RESEARCH AND LEGISLATION TEAM
No jobs openings are currently available in this branch
PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION & REGIONAL SUPPORT TEAM
No job openings are currently available in this branch
2025
- State Workforce Board Welcomes New Board Chair – June 2025
- State Workforce Board Awards $24 Million to Strengthen California’s Healthcare Workforce – February 2025
- State Workforce Board Awards $2.9 Million to Drive Quality Jobs for Native Americans, Veterans and Underserved – February 2025
2024
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- State Workforce Board Announces $28.5 Million to Support Healthcare Sector Training and Employment – October 2024
- State Workforce Board Awards $2.7 M to Accelerate Employment for Disadvantaged Workers – October 2024
- State Workforce Board Awards $33.7 M to Create High Quality Jobs for Underserved Californians – February 2024
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