Standing before over 100 teens employed by Action for Boston Community Development’s (ABCD) SummerWorks Program last Thursday, Gov. Charles Baker spoke about the critical role summer jobs can play for teens in preparing them for later employment in an evolving workplace.

On a visit to the Mattapan Center for Life, which serves as one of SummerWorks’ sites, the governor talked about the jobs program, which has provided 1,050 Boston teens with summer jobs with 250 partner employers and is part of the larger, state-funded YouthWorks initiative, which this year has provided summer employment across the Commonwealth for approximately 4,000 lower-income teens between the ages of 14 and 21.

Since 2007, the program has provided more than 33,000 summer jobs for Massachusetts youth.

“Massachusetts is the only state in the country that funds a program like this,” Baker said. “This is the only one that puts its shoulder to the wheel to create this kind of program in conjunction with ABCD and all the partners you see here.”

“With YouthWorks, we are aligning what employers tell us they need in future workers with experience, education and skill-building programs. “We need to replicate what works and do more of it so young men and women can find a path that leads them to a job and ultimately a career.”

Ronald Walker II, secretary of Labor and Workforce Development, said the program has proven its worth over the years. “Companies tell us again and again they cannot find enough skilled workers to fill available jobs,” said Walker, who joined Baker at the Mattapan event. “By supporting young people in acquiring the skills they need to enter and be successful in the workforce, we’re also meeting the needs of businesses for a pipeline of skilled workers.”

One of the partners of the SummerWorks program is the Boston Police Department, which employs about 60 teens each summer at its Boston Police Teen Academy. One of them, 16-year-old Steven Lopez, appreciated the governor’s visit. “It’s exciting,” he said. “I feel it’s important for [Gov. Baker] to think about teenagers and know what they are doing over the summer and how they are getting involved. I think he’ll be proud of that.”

The state budget signed by Baker last month will keep things going for the teens of 2016. Next summer, YouthWorks will have $11.5 million to run its programs, the highest amount of funding the program has received to date.

YouthWorks is administered by the Commonwealth Corporation on behalf of the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development.