Seventy young adults in Pennsylvania are getting a new route into union careers through an expansion of REFORM Alliance’s work beyond probation policy. The criminal justice organization co-founded by Jay-Z and Meek Mill has partnered with local workforce officials in Lancaster on a program designed to turn supervision into a pathway toward skilled employment.
Called REFORM Work Matters, the initiative will serve people ages 18 to 24 who are currently on probation or parole, as well as those who recently completed supervision. AllHipHop reports that participants will enter a free 10-week apprenticeship-readiness program through Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology.
Training will prepare participants for construction work while helping them earn an OSHA 10 certification. The program also provides a $250 weekly stipend and free Uber transportation, removing two barriers that can make unpaid job training difficult to complete. Graduates will then be connected with opportunities in union building trades.
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REFORM Is Taking Its Probation Work Into The Workplace
The Lancaster program is backed by $518,000 from the U.S. Department of Labor through Pennsylvania’s RESTART initiative. The state announced the broader program in August, with nearly $3 million in federal funding expected to serve about 400 justice-impacted young people across Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry says Lancaster’s share will specifically fund REFORM Work Matters.
The expansion follows a similar effort REFORM helped launch in Richmond this year. Ten people on probation completed that six-week pre-apprenticeship program, and all 10 accepted union apprenticeships afterward, according to REFORM Alliance.
Pennsylvania has already been a major focus of the organization’s policy work. REFORM spent years supporting probation legislation that became Act 44 in 2023, creating earlier review opportunities and employment incentives for people under supervision. The Pennsylvania General Assembly confirms the law was enacted from Senate Bill 838 in December of that year.
REFORM Work Matters puts part of that policy agenda into practice before supervision ends. Instead of limiting the work to shortening probation terms, the Lancaster program is designed to help participants leave with training and a clearer route toward steady employment.
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