US Department of Labor awards $1M to provide employment, training services for workers displaced by mass Tesla layoff in Texas

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced an award of more than $1 million to Texas to provide employment and training services for people affected by the permanent layoffs at the Tesla Gigafactory in Austin. 

Administered by the department’s Employment and Training Administration, the award is the first increment of a National Dislocated Worker Grant of up to $3,230,050 to the Texas Workforce Commission. The funding allows the state to provide retraining and skills development for dislocated workers in Bastrop, Blanco, Burnet, Caldwell, Fayette, Hays, Lee, Llano, Travis and Williamson counties.

Supported by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014, National Dislocated Worker Grants provide a state or local board with funding for direct services and assistance in areas experiencing a major economic dislocation event that leads to workforce needs exceeding available resources.