States share $138M to strengthen, expand innovative job trainingand reemployment strategies for laid-off workers

WASHINGTON — The U.S. labor market is in constant motion as businesses react to fluid marketplace demands. To stay current with these changes and equip workers with the skills needed to be competitive, job-training programs must be nimble and ready to respond as labor demands change.

Effective partnerships with industries and educational organizations also allow federally funded training programs to align better with the local economy and shift as changes occur.

To accelerate these efforts, the U.S. Department of Labor is awarding more than $138 million to 27 states and the Cherokee tribal nation through the Sector Partnership National Emergency Grant program. The funds will develop innovative job-training programs focused on regional and industry-specific collaborations.

"We must constantly innovate and expand best practices to make sure our nation's workforce can compete in the global economy," said. U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez. "Today's awards will help better align workforce skills with the needs of regional industries. By doing so, these funds will have a positive and meaningful impact on the communities they serve now and into the future."

The funds awarded today will build on "sector strategies," industry-focused approaches to workforce and economic development that align job-training programs to meet those needs of a local or regional labor market. Sector partnerships build of the principles in Vice President Joseph R. Biden's Job-Driven Training Report to encourage greater regional collaborations between employers, educational institutions and the local workforce system.

The grant initiative also complements the goals to build a more integrated and comprehensive workforce development system envisioned by the new Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act.

The awards will connect workers who lost a job through no fault of their own and individuals struggling with long-term unemployment to a broad range of services, including on-the-job training; transitional jobs, pre-apprenticeships and Registered Apprenticeships; job search assistance; and career planning and job coaching.

In addition to expanding work-based learning, grantees must align services with other federal, state or local programs and agencies, such as Unemployment Insurance, Trade Adjustment Assistance, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, to improve the quality and efficiency of service delivery. Recent studies show work-based learning opportunities help get the unemployment back to work at good paying jobs.

The Workforce Investment Act Dislocated Worker National Reserve fund will support the grants.

Editor's Note: A listing of the entities receiving an award and the amounts follows: