Workforce and Employment Committee
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The purpose of the Workforce and Employment Committee (WEC) is to address the workforce shortage in the public behavioral health system, identify behavioral health workforce training needs, promote the employment of individuals with psychiatric disabilities, and plan for the future of funding of workforce efforts to meet the diverse needs of individuals served in the public behavioral health system. The committee also aims to ensure that individuals with behavioral health conditions have opportunities to work and lead productive lives. Additionally, state law provides the Council with specific responsibilities in advising the Department of Health Care and Access Information (HCAI) on policy development for education and training. The Council is also required to oversee the development of the Five-Year Education and Training Development Plan, which includes the review and final approval of the plan. The WEC works closely with HCAI staff to provide input, feedback, and guidance, and also to serve as the conduit for presenting information to the full Council membership as it relates to its responsibilities set in law.
More information on our purpose, mandates, goals, and members is contained in our Charter and
2025-2026 Work Plan.
Upcoming Meetings
Quarterly Meeting
Please visit the
Workforce and Employment Committee meeting archives page for information on past meetings.
Committee Documents
The Workforce and Employment Committee has developed the following documents to solicit stakeholder feedback from various state entities and gather information from local jurisdictions. The following documents contain information that aims to improve access and quality of care for individuals served by California’s public behavioral health system and ensure a diverse, well-trained, and culturally responsive behavioral health workforce.
- Standardized Peer Support Specialist Question List for County Presenters – Questions for county behavioral health departments regarding their Medi-Cal certified and non-Medi-Cal certified Peer Support Specialist workforce to address gaps of information for local implementation, advocate for resources to be directed where they are needed, support employment opportunities for non-certified Peer Support Specialists, and improve the peer certification process for peers, training programs, and county systems.
- Recommendations for Community Transition In-Reach Services Implementation (August 2025)- Recommendations for the Occupational Therapist provider requirements on the BH-CONNECT Community Transition In-Reach Service Teams.
- Occupational Therapist Support Letter Re: BH-CONNECT Addendum Community Transition In-Reach Teams (December 2024)-Recommendations for the Occupational Therapist provider requirements on the BH-CONNECT Community Transition In-Reach Service Teams
- Letter to CalMHSA Re: Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialist Certification Areas of Specialization-Recommendations on the areas of specialization for Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialist Certification.
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Recommendation Letter Re: Occupational Therapists as LMHPs and LPHAs-Letter to the Department of Health Care Services recommending that Occupational Therapists be included as provider types under Licensed Mental Health Professionals and Licensed Practitioners of the Healing Arts.
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Letter of Response from CBHPC to DHCS regarding Community Health Worker Benefit-Recommendations for the peer supervisor trainings under the Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialist Benefit.
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Peer Support Specialist Implementation Letter of Recommendations #2 to DHCS-Recommendations for the development of Medi-Cal reimbursable Community Health Worker services.
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Peer Support Specialist Implementation Letter of Recommendation #1 to DHCS-Feedback on process requirements and county initiation and reporting for the Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialist Certification Benefit.
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Workforce and Employment Committee Recommendation Letter Re: BHIN Peer Supervisor Trainings-Feedback on the training requirements, core competencies, areas of specialization, range of responsibilities, qualifications, practice guidelines, and supervision standards for Medi-Cal Peer Support Specialist Certification.
- Letter of Support for CASRA Summit on Education and Employment 2019
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Public Comment on HCBA Waiver Amendment
- Letter of Support for WET Funding Extension FY 2018-2019
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DHCS Responses to Peer Certification Questions from CBHPC Workforce and Employment Committee
Committee Resources
The Workforce and Employment Committee references the following documents to assist with the committee’s work and action items:
- Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI) Behavioral Health Workforce Strategy (December 2024)-The workforce strategy unites common goals, actionable data, prioritization, and coordination across organizations and sectors, to achieve a greater impact on addressing the challenges and needs of California’s public behavioral health workforce.
- Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI) Behavioral Health Initiatives (January 2025)
- Per California Welfare and Institutions Code (WIC) Section 5820, the Department of Health Care Access and Information, in coordination with the California Behavioral Health Planning Council, shall identify the total statewide needs for each professional and other occupational category utilizing county needs assessment information and develop a five-year education and training development plan. Each five-year plan shall be reviewed and approved by the California Behavioral Health Planning Council.
The Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI) introduced the development of the 2026-2030 Workforce Education and Training (WET) Five-Year Plan at the California Behavioral Health Council’s Workforce and Employment Committee (WEC) during the January 2025 Quarterly Meeting. The plan development process and timeline were shared on slides 28-30 of the presentation. The presentation also includes behavioral health workforce updates for Proposition 1: Behavioral Health Services Act, the California Behavioral Health Community-Based Organized Networks of Equitable Care and Treatment (BH-CONNECT) Demonstration Waiver, and a summary of HCAI’s Behavioral Health Workforce Strategy Results.
