Workforce Solutions Gulf Coast, METRO, and The Women’s Home recently partnered to host the METRO Live, Work, Ride Job Fair, an innovative community event designed to address three key factors that impact long-term success: employment, transportation, and housing.
Held on May 21 in Houston, the event brought together 33 employers and community partners and welcomed more than 200 job seekers seeking employment opportunities and supportive resources. The event also generated immediate results, including 25 on-the-spot interviews, 62 scheduled interviews, and 7 on-the-spot hires, demonstrating the value of connecting workforce services, transportation access, and community support in one location.
While attendees had the opportunity to meet directly with employers and explore available positions, event organizers emphasized that the initiative is about much more than finding a job.
“This is more of a program than a job fair,” said James Cardenas, Business Service Unit and Recruiter Supervisor for Workforce Solutions North Region. “It aims to answer one very important question: can we have retention and employment for people in Houston that don’t have any transportation?”
The Live, Work, Ride initiative was created through a partnership between Workforce Solutions and METRO, with a focus on helping job seekers access employment opportunities located along existing transit routes. By connecting workforce resources with transportation access, the program helps reduce one of the common barriers individuals face when seeking and maintaining employment.
Margaret Dunlap, Senior Public Affairs Representative for METRO, explained that the partnership grew from conversations about how to better connect people with both transportation and employment opportunities.
“It was in the conversation of how do we get people to make sure that they have transportation to the job that they want,” Dunlap said. Through the partnership, employers and job seekers can be connected in locations that are accessible through METRO’s transit system.
The event also highlighted the importance of housing stability as part of workforce success. Through its partnership with The Women’s Home, attendees had access to additional community resources designed to support long-term self-sufficiency.
“This partnership has been amazing,” said April Macquintosh, Chief Operations Officer for The Women’s Home. “So many people come through our doors looking for jobs specific to the Spring Branch area. We have a lot of employers, and everyone has really high energy.”
Macquintosh noted that the collaboration has helped expand workforce development programming and connect more individuals with available resources and opportunities.
The event’s three-part approach—Live, Work, Ride—brought together housing support, employment services, and transportation resources under one roof, creating a comprehensive experience for attendees.
“This year we have the three components: the live, the work, and the ride,” Cardenas said. “We have Live through our partnership with The Women’s Home, Work with Workforce Solutions, and Ride with METRO. We are really covering all bases.”
As the third installment of the Live, Work, Ride initiative, the event demonstrated the value of regional partnerships in addressing workforce challenges through collaborative solutions. By bringing together employers, transportation providers, workforce professionals, and community organizations, the program continues to help individuals connect with opportunities that support both immediate employment needs and long-term success.
Workforce Solutions extends its appreciation to METRO, The Women’s Home, participating employers, staff, and community partners whose collaboration helped make this event possible. Together, these partnerships continue to create pathways that connect people not only to jobs, but also to the resources needed to build stable and successful futures.
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