E2C Expert Match Technical Assistance: United Domestic Workers in El Centro, California

Objective  
This scope outlines specific areas of technical assistance (TA) support to be provided to the United Domestic Workers under the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Energy to Communities (E2C) Expert Match Program.  

Background 
United Domestic Workers (UDW) is a social justice union that focuses on supporting workers and their communities. The union consists of more than 171,000 home care and family childcare providers across the state of California including El Centro. In El Centro, UDW represents primary women of color care workers who face barriers such as limited English proficiency, immigration status, and geographic isolation, which limit their economic mobility and quality of life. To create more welcoming and accessible spaces for the El Centro workers, UDW is seeking to upgrade its buildings potentially adding solar, storage, and electric vehicle charging stations. While UDW is very involved with local community and sustainability planning efforts, they lack the capacity and expertise to explore and finance these infrastructure upgrades.

DOE E2C Program 
The E2C program is a DOE-funded technical assistance program designed to provide technical support to communities transitioning to more affordable and sustainable energy economies. One offering under E2C is the "Expert Match" technical assistance program, through which DOE national laboratories and other partners provide 40–60 hours of technical support on a topic where expert assistance is critical to the community making an informed energy decision.  

Work Area
Work Area 1: Solar Techno-Economic Analysis