Name
Increasing Access to High Road Jobs Through Contractor Supports in the Decarbonization Sector
Date & Time
Thursday, May 28, 2026, 12:35 PM - 1:05 PM
Description
Decarbonizing residential buildings to improve affordability, resilience, and building performance requires more than a skilled workforce - it depends on an equitable contractor ecosystem capable of delivering energy efficiency and electrification projects at scale. Yet small, BIPOC, women-led, and disadvantaged contractors continue to face systemic barriers to participation in publicly funded decarbonization programs, including limited access to cash-flow financing, affordable benefits & insurance, business management support, and ongoing technical training. These challenges can make participation in publicly funded decarbonization programs - especially those with High Road labor standards such as prevailing wage, targeted hire, and benefits - financially and operationally difficult.
To address these barriers, the Bay Area Residential Building Decarbonization High Road Training Partnership (HRTP), led by Rising Sun Center for Opportunity, is developing the Contractor Supports Resource Guide & Plan (The Guide). The Guide is designed to help policymakers and program leaders strengthen contractor participation while ensuring High Road labor standards are achievable, sustainable, and equitable. The Guide is paired with an interactive tool that contractors can use to easily identify support organizations and resources by category, geography, and revenue level, helping them find services that align with their business size and needs.
Within The Guide, it catalogs existing supports that are offered in the 9-County Bay Area of California, identifies gaps in the current ecosystem, and offers actionable recommendations for embedding contractor supports into publicly funded decarbonization program design and implementation. This 30-minute table talk will give building professionals an overview of existing organizations that offer contractor support resources and gaps that exist in creating high road jobs in the residential building decarbonization sector.
Session Type
Table Talk