September 10, 2026 (Washington, D.C.) – Leaders from industry, labor, education, and philanthropy today launched the Compact for America’s Youth, a challenge to public and private sector leaders to open real paths from school into careers for young people. The American Federation of Teachers (AFT), CareerWise, and Jobs for the Future (JFF) issued the call to action at a forum in Washington, D.C., where organizations announced their first commitments.

The Compact responds to three forces converging on young people entering the workforce: affordability, anxiety, and artificial intelligence. Together they strain the launchpad decade between ages 16 and 26, when young people accumulate the education, experience, and networks that shape their earnings and sense of possibility for years after. The Compact asks organizations to answer with public, measurable commitments across three pillars: mobilizing industry investment, advancing smart systems and policies, and deploying innovative tools and resources.

Thursday’s forum featured remarks and panel discussions with leaders across sectors, including AFT President Randi Weingarten, CareerWise President and CEO Brent Parton, Jobs for the Future President and CEO Maria Flynn, and, RAISE US CEO Gina Raimondo, alongside business leaders such as General Motors’ Reggie Humphrey, Micron’s Melanie Lewis, Aon’s Dan Serota, and Siemens Foundation CEO David Etzwiler, plus representatives from IUPAT, NABTU, Bloomberg Philanthropies, the College Board, and the National Skills Coalition.

“Every young person deserves to see real pathways from the classroom to success in life, be it college, career or both and our members are the ones helping to build those pathways every day,” said AFT President Randi Weingarten. “That’s why we’re coupling our passion with a substantial investment for this effort—$150,000 to help affiliates turn interest into action, whether that’s a robotics club, a welding partnership with a local employer, or a first taste of a career in middle school. AI is changing what the future of work looks like, and it’s changing it fast. Our job is to make sure young people aren’t left to navigate that alone—that they have educators, labor and employers walking the pathway with them. This Compact is a commitment to do that work together, and to hold each other accountable for results.”

“AI is reshaping what an early career even looks like, and the years that should launch a young person – the last stretch of high school, a first real paid job, the first two years after – aren’t working as a launchpad for enough of them,” said Brent Parton, President and CEO of CareerWise. “No single employer, school, or union fixes that alone. What’s new here is a compact across the public and private sectors, everyone standing behind young people at the moment that decides the next decade of their lives.”

“Helping young people get a strong start in the workforce has long been central to JFF’s mission, and that work is even more important as AI reshapes how people enter and advance in their careers,” said Maria Flynn, President and CEO of Jobs for the Future. “Young people need more than technical skills. They need meaningful early experiences with the world of work, clear information about the opportunities available to them, and pathways that connect learning to economic mobility. Through our partnership with LinkedIn, we’re building on JFF’s longstanding investment in early-career support by examining how AI is changing entry-level jobs and what it will take to help young people navigate and succeed in a rapidly changing economy.”

The First Commitments 

Organizations in attendance announced their first commitments, ranging from new funding and program launches to shared curriculum, digital tools, and pledges to open more paid pathways for young people. 

• The AFT is directing $150,000 in new Career Pathways Partnership Grants to local affiliates to launch and strengthen career-connected learning in their communities, supporting work-based learning programs, employer and higher education partnerships, and classroom career and technical education clubs. 
• JFF and LinkedIn are partnering on a $400,000, one-year initiative to examine how AI is reshaping early-career jobs and pathways, what skills young people need to navigate that shift, and how practitioners can support them. The partnership will produce an in-depth analysis intended to drive systems-level change in how young people are supported at the start of their careers.
• North America’s Building Trades Unions (NABTU) and Microsoft announced the Jobs Machine, an AI-powered tool that helps students, parents, and job seekers understand and enroll in registered construction apprenticeship programs. 
• The AFL-CIO’s workforce development arm, the Working for America Institute (WAI), announced a new initiative with the AFT to explore piloting WAI’s MC2 (Manufacturing Core Curriculum) with high school students in up to three locations in 2027.
• General Motors is committing $500,000 to Manufacturing Futures, a new AFT program launching this school year that will connect middle school students in the Detroit area to advanced manufacturing careers across nine schools in Detroit Public Schools Community District and Dearborn Public Schools.
• RAISE US, a new nonpartisan nonprofit organization piloting programs to ensure that workers aren’t left behind in the transition to an AI economy, is partnering with AFT to explore how higher education institutions can better prepare faculty, staff and students to responsibly engage AI in the classroom and better prepare college students for the impact of AI in the workforce — including focus groups, surveys, and direct engagement with faculty, staff and students.
• The Siemens Foundation is committing $2 million to expand CareerWise’s radiologic technologist apprenticeships nationwide, bringing the model to two additional cities. The commitment builds on CareerWise’s healthcare apprenticeship work in New York City, including its FutureReadyNYC Healthcare Pathway Accelerator, and comes in part from the Siemens Healthineers Fund of the Siemens Foundation.
• The Walton Family Foundation is investing $5 million in CareerWise to launch a national “Apprentice Ready Schools” initiative to forge direct linkages between high schools and industry partners. The initiative will impact up to 60 districts and charter networks nationwide to design, strengthen, and scale apprenticeship and work-based learning opportunities, reaching at least 30,000 students. 
• The Annie E. Casey Foundation invested in CareerWise to support 5 states as they align education and apprenticeship systems; and work closely with national industry partners to develop sector-based models that accelerate employer engagement in the expansion of real apprenticeship opportunities for youth. 

“The Building Trades have been the original jobs machine for generations, creating pathways to the family-sustaining, middle-class careers through world-class Registered Apprenticeship programs,” said NABTU President Sean McGarvey. “Today, we’re proudly partnering with AFT, Microsoft Elevate, ASCA, and CareerWise to bring that opportunity to more young people than ever before. The Jobs Machine will help students, parents, families and educators navigate apprenticeship pathways with the same confidence they have when exploring college options. Because every young person deserves the best access to clear information, real opportunity, and a chance to build a successful future through our fantastic skilled trades programs.”

“Providing America’s youth with the vital skills needed to create rewarding and sustainable careers goes to the heart of WAI’s mission and we are excited to expand our important work with this initiative,” said Elizabeth Shuler, President of the AFL-CIO and WAI’s Board of Trustees.

“Across the country, there are high-demand careers offering young people a path to economic opportunity, but we need stronger pathways to connect people with those jobs,” said David Etzwiler, CEO of the Siemens Foundation. “By bringing together employers, educators, government and workforce organizations, we can continue to create sector-focused partnerships to strengthen these pathways. We congratulate CareerWise on this impactful work and look forward to expanding access to additional programs in New York and across the country.”

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About AFT

The AFT represents 1.875 million pre-K through 12th-grade teachers; paraprofessionals and other school-related personnel; higher education faculty and professional staff; federal, state and local government employees; nurses and healthcare workers; and early childhood educators.

About CareerWise 

CareerWise is a national nonprofit organization leading the movement to connect young people to meaningful careers through education-to-career pathways. Moving beyond the limitations of a one-size-fits-all college model, CareerWise architects and advances real solutions that connect education with meaningful careers through career accelerator infrastructure, including its gold standard youth apprenticeship programs. Drawing on nearly a decade of hands-on experience, the organization directly implements programs supporting 2,500+ high school aged apprentices, touching hundreds of communities and school districts across the country. CareerWise also supports 80+ intermediaries across 35 states and partners with businesses of all sizes, from innovative startups to Fortune 500 companies.

About Jobs for the Future (JFF)

JFF transforms U.S. education and workforce systems to drive economic success for people, businesses, and communities. www.jff.org.