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Ready to Work has placed about 4,500 San Antonians in new jobs since the program started in 2022. A report suggests the people who are currently working or are in training will provide an economic impact of $11.8 billion.
The study focuses on increased wages, spending, and savings in social programs that participants may no longer need after attaining higher employment.
Analyzed by economist Steve Nivin, the report used data from the program's inception until October of last year when 11,000 people had enrolled in training and 4,000 had completed it.
Based on the assessment, there’s a predicted $7.5 billion income increase for participants; $3.8 billion economic impact with consumer spending; and $497 million savings in participants no longer needed as many social safety net programs like SNAP, Medicaid, and housing assistance.
“These are substantial impacts, and this will continue to support the growth and development of the San Antonio economy, really beyond these impacts, well into the future, because we've got to have a trained and educated workforce to continue to grow,” Niven said.
Job placement is increasing according to Mike Ramsey, executive director of the city’s Workforce Development office.
“Our rate of job placement is up to 200 job placements every month. So the program has gained significant momentum over the last year, and we hope that momentum continues into the finality of the program in 2030,” he said.
Ready to Work has gained $235.8 million in sales tax revenues that voters approved in 2020 and has spent about $101 million so far. The tax ended in 2026, and it spends about $7,100 on each participant. It’s expected that enrollment will end in 2029 and all training completed in 2030.
Among the impacts to economic activity and spending are downstream benefits as program completions stimulate the economy.
“The additional spending activity will also support 38,364 jobs (1,163 per year on average) with incomes to the workers in these jobs totaling $2.0 billion ($60.6 million per year on average) over the time-period of their careers,” the report said.
The report also briefly looked into recidivism of participants who are involved in the justice system, including those who have been released from jail, finding that those who are able to find jobs are less likely to be rearrested.
“Among the participants in San Antonio Ready to Work, 1,215 have been involved in the justice system. Assuming the same completion rate among all participants of 61% and a job placement rate of 70%, there will be 519 of these individuals who are placed into jobs,” the report states.
On the use of social benefits, the reduction of $497 million comes from frequently used programs no longer being needed as participants secure stronger employment.
“Social savings in this context refers to the taxpayer dollars saved on spending for programs such as SNAP, TANF, WIC, Medicaid, CHIP, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies, and housing benefits that participants were assumed to use while training through San Antonio Ready to Work,” the report said
Over time, the program has scaled back its original commitments. When it was initially proposed to voters, the program estimated that it would place 40,000 residents in high demand jobs.
Those goals have been reduced, and the program now aims to interview over 39,000 applicants, enroll 28,000 in training, and place 15,600 in approved jobs.
To date,15,500 have enrolled in training, 6,600 have completed the program, and 4,600 have been placed in jobs. About 2,200 are still in the job search with an average of 68 days to find job placement after completion.
There are about 2,000 employer partners in the program who have hired participants. The average salary increase for completists is $33,700.
The occupations with the largest number of hires are heavy tractor-trailer drivers, followed by customer service reps, medical assistants, nursing assistants, and registered nurses.
The largest employers hiring participants include Methodist Healthcare Ministries, University Health, and the City of San Antonio,
Earlier on, the program was met with skepticism by some members of the city council. That has softened with more robust support from members, while some encourage faster improvements.
In a city council meeting on Wednesday, District 9 Councilwoman Misty Spears questioned the return on investment for dollar spent vs. dollars returned. She said the city should spend its time guiding participants into jobs like trades and into emerging industries around AI.
“I really think the employer-led model is going to be most important and with the time left, we really should just focus on the things we know we do really well and get as many people into that as possible. And trades are … what I'm hearing a lot about and using that time to quickly scale up our workforce in those areas,” she said.
San Antonio Mayor Gina Ortiz Jones also questioned return on investment and attention to skills gaps.
“I view this as a scholarship,” Mayor Jones said. “Some folks will take the scholarship, and some will not, and that's OK, but I think given we're using tax dollars, we have to be cognizant of the ROI (return on investment) and see how that skill that we're training folks for helps to fill a gap in our community.”
However, San Antonio City Manager Erik Walsh offered the consideration that the program helps offer a competitive edge regardless of industry.
“I’d offer mayor, that, it's not just a scholarship — it is an employment opportunity for the employers, right? So the employers that want to use Ready to Work as their HR recruitment, that'll make it a little bit easier for them,” Walsh said.
