Albert Horsley’s future seemed bleak and directionless. A resident of Portland, he spent his early twenties drifting in and out of homelessness. Many nights, he slept under a bridge. Community college classes didn’t pan out. Stints in low-wage jobs didn’t last.

Then he caught a break.

In 2010, a local youth and family center told him about a training program offered by the Laborers union; they were weatherization courses, teaching trainees to become installers and technicians for retrofitting projects. Albert entered the program, got certified, and was hired by an energy company to do work as part of the Clean Energy Works Portland (CEWP) project.

Albert is now working full-time and earning $15.23 an hour plus health benefits, and says “this opportunity