US Department of Labor awards $420K to support workforce training for Kansas workers displaced by MasterBrand Cabinets’ closure

WASHINGTON – When MasterBrand Cabinets announced plans in December 2022 to close its Newton, Kansas location, the area lost one of its largest employers, displacing more than 400 workers.

To address the economic hardship the closure caused these workers, the U.S. Department of Labor today announced the award of a $420,000 National Dislocated Worker Grant to the Kansas Local Area I Workforce Investment Board to provide employment and workforce training services for affected workers in Butler, Harvey, Marion, McPherson, Reno, Saline and Sedgwick counties.

Administered by the department’s Employment and Training Administration, the grant will allow the workforce investment board to provide retraining and skills development for dislocated workers in the seven counties.

Supported by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014, National Dislocated Worker Grants provide assistance to a state or local board to fund direct services and assistance in areas experiencing a major economic dislocation event.