What Trump Shutting Down Job Corps Means For Young Black Folks Entering the Workforce
For decades, the Job Corps program served as the anchor for young adults seeking to transition into the workforce. But now, the Department of Labor delivered devastating news that all Job Corps centers will pause operations nationwide by June 30, 2025. The shocking news has left thousands of young people and families unsure about their future, and communities nationwide enraged.
The federally funded program served as a cornerstone for providing free education and vocational training to young Americans aged 16 to 24. The news came as a shock to many students in targeted cities such as Detroit, St. Louis, and several others when they were notified to clear their rooms and exit the premises. Families in various cities scrambled to help their children move out of the centers, while others had nowhere to go.
According to The Hill, the Labor Secretary said the program no longer achieves 'the intended outcomes that students deserve,' citing 'a startling number of serious incident reports and our in-depth fiscal analysis.'
The Root spoke with Illinois attorney Henderson Banks ,who explained the unlawful measures taken by the Trump administration to dismantle the Job Corps program.
'What the Trump administration and the Department of Labor is doing is not what legislation stated or enacted for the program or certain job sites to be dismantled.' Banks shared. 'There's an administrative process that was not followed, which gives those contractors who received and depended on funding a claim against the Trump administration and the Department of Labor to sue the government. The way that the program was discontinued was illegal.'
Banks further discussed these actions are enough to file a lawsuit against the administration. 'I would say they don't it's not readily apparent that they have a a claim based on discrimination,' he explained. 'They could potentially have a claim for a class action or a claim against the Department of Labor for not following the administrative process that they should have followed in order to dismantle the program.'
Families and communities were stunned by the Job Corps' sudden pause. One TikTok user shared that the government wants young people to be homeless. 'They want minors ages 16 to 24 to be homeless,' the TikTok user said, 'because that's what going to happen.
Reports show that 47% of the students are African American, and some are saying that this was a targeted move. 'The nationwide shutdown of Job Corps feels like an attack,' another TikTok user said. 'People went to Job Corps when they had nowhere else to go; this was a resource for them.'
Conspiracy theorists believe that the removal of Job Corp is timely given the shortage of military enlistments. 'They're shutting down JobCorps to boost military enlistments,' an X user shared. 'Military recruitment has been at an all time low for the past couple years.'
In 2020, military recruitment dropped down 58% due to COVID. Between 2023 and 2024, there has been a uptick in enrollment, increasing by 12.8% across all military branches, but they did not successfully meet their fiscal year goals. According to reports, the Army is expected to surpass its goal with new enlistments.
Online users share stories on how Job Corps saved their lives while expressing their disbelief at the closing of the centers. 'Job Corps actually saved my life,' an X commenter posted. 'I was at the end of the road and had nowhere else to turn to. I couldn't afford to finish college, I was homeless at 17, working meaningless part-time jobs. That is the reality for so many people at job corps.'
Others shared their frustration on how the Trump administration is stripping away resources for young adults. 'Job Corps can sometimes be the only means for low-income kids to find opportunity in a world that doesn't want them to thrive,' a Thread user shared. 'Trust me, I've been there – Job Corp saved my ass from homelessness and got me into a trade school at 17 yrs old. This move by this administration is f**king diabolical and further proof that they don't give a sh*t about helping those kids that need it the most.'
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