A program tested at the recent NBA All-Star Game in San Francisco is finding fresh ways to provide jobs for a crop of workers who may have been overlooked.
Not only is the Bridge to Work program now aiming to increase employment for the next series of marquee events in the Bay Area, including Super Bowl LX and six FIFA World Cup matches, its early success is garnering attention from other markets wondering if they can replicate it around events of their own.
The program launched through a partnership between the Bay Area Host Committee and San Francisco-based nonprofit Tipping Point Community. For the 2025 NBA All-Star Game, it gathered 50 locals to work in hospitality, transportation and culinary positions, with leaders looking to grow that number to 500 workers for upcoming events.
By providing support such as covering the cost of transportation, child-care stipends, training, uniform provisions and post-event training programs, Bridge to Work targets locals across varying backgrounds, many of whom were previously incarcerated.
With the unemployment rate for individuals with criminal records being approximately 30%, according to the Chamber of Commerce, and the Bay Area’s generally low unemployment rate of approximately 4%, finding a job in the area is especially difficult for those seeking a second chance. It’s what made this program so essential to the area, said Bay Area Host Committee President and CEO Zaileen Janmohamed.
“To put these events on, you need a decent-sized labor pool. That was the first inkling of the idea. We thought, ‘Is there a way to bring people back into the workforce?” Janmohamed said. “We went to the leagues and said there’s a change that’s required here.”
Organization around the program began about 18 months before the NBA All-Star Game. With Tipping Point’s proximity to the area, the Bay Area Host Committee chose the group to help with recruiting, participant selection and connecting workers with post-event training to find future career opportunities. After those individuals are connected with more sustainable, long-term opportunities, the program moves on to its next batch of workers for big events.
Though the organization declined to share specifics on pay for working the events, the goal is to eventually get employees onto “family-sustaining wages” by the end of their time with Bridge to Work, said Tipping Point Community CEO Sam Cobbs.
“This was our sweet spot, because we were already connected to organizations that were working and training people who were unemployed and underemployed around how to get them back into the workforce,” Cobbs said. “Many of these participants had never even had the opportunity to step inside Chase [Center]. To give them this boost is huge.”
The program also partnered with other local organizations, such as Juma Ventures, Rubicon Ventures and the Center for Employment Opportunities, for outreach in the community.
With the next step being to raise more capital for future event support, Janmohamed said she has begun hearing from the NBA and multiple undisclosed teams within the league, as well as FIFA host cities, about implementing a similar program across the country. Though she’s supportive, she emphasizes the need to build similar programs through local communities.
“People have called asking how we did this. My initial response to most people was that we have a template now built in the Bay Area, which makes it easier for the future,” she said. “So if you’re going to replicate this, take the time to pull together different entities and develop the concept.”
