Mass. Workforce Training Fund Gives Grants to Employers for ESL

Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development Suzanne M. Bump (photo: mass.gov)

(Updated 8 May 2008. See Editor's Note at end of story.)

The Workforce Training Fund, part of the Massachusetts Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development, is encouraging employers to apply for grants for training that focuses exclusively or primarily on adult basic education (ABE) and/or English for speakers of other languages (ESOL).

The overall purpose of the Workforce Training Fund (WTF) is to give resources to companies to train current and newly-hired employees, in order to improve employee skills and maintain the economic strength of businesses in Massachusetts.

One company that received a WTF grant for such purposes is the California Products Corp., based in Andover, Mass. The WTF awarded the corporation $10,550 to train employees in ESL (English as a Second Language) instruction.

The beneficiaries of the ESL instruction are seven above-entry-level employees, in positions such as maintenance technician and machine operator.

One of the seven employees is a supervisor for whom "it is extemely important that he [give] instructions that are understood," said the company in an e-mail to EthnicNewz.org.

Gov. Deval Patrick announced the $10,550 grant, as well as others, late yesterday (April 29, 2008) while at a dinner of the Merrimack Valley Chamber of Commerce, according to a press release from his office.

The grant is part of Gov. Patrick's economic stimulus plan for regions across the state.

Enacted into law in 1998, the Workforce Training Fund is financed entirely by state employers. Grant recipients cannot use WTF money to train undocumented workers, in accordance with Gov. Patrick's executive order 481, signed on March 15, 2007.

The WTF's major focus is on small- to medium-sized businesses that would be unable to invest in employees without the assistance of the WTF.

The WTF's funding priorities are for projects in which:
• job retention, job growth or increased wages would result
• the company's productivity, competitiveness and ability to do business in Massachusetts would increase
• the applicant has committed to providing significant private investment in training for and after the duration of the grant.

Employers may apply for up to $50,000 if submitting applications under the rolling, monthly process of the WTF. No application deadline exists for such applications; they may be submitted any time.

For applications for more than $50,000, the next deadline is July 1, 2008.

Non-profits whose major revenues come from government sources or that do not pay into the Workforce Training Fund are not encouraged to apply.

The following types of businesses are eligible to apply for WTF grants:

• individual companies
• employer organizations, such as trade associations and informal groups of employers
• labor organizations
• training providers that are not partnering with an individual employer but with employers, an employee group or a labor organization.

The application for WTF training funds, as well as information about eligibility, are online at mass.gov/Elwd/docs/dcs/wtf/2080_508.pdf.

Questions before applying may be directed to the following as well:

• Workforce Training Fund operations manager, at the Division of Career Services: 1-800-252-1591
• Massachusetts Office of Business Development: 1-800-5-CAPITAL
• Commonwealth Corporation: commcorp.org/aap/index.html or companies may call:
Boston and northeastern Mass.: 617-727-8158, ext. 1241 or e-mail driikonen AT commcorp DOT org
Central and western Mass.: 413-582-9054 ext. 103 or e-mail jhall AT commcorp.org;
Southeastern Mass.: 508-679-4974 or e-mail rvitello AT commcorp DOT org
• Many of the Workforce Investment Boards in Massachusetts may be contacted for additional help.

In other related news, the following four companies in the Merrimack Valley region of Massachusetts also received WTF grants, which Gov. Patrick announced yesterday:

• Atlee of Delaware, Inc., in North Andover: $19,000 to train 14 workers in ISO 9000 quality management system development plus training of selected personnel in ISO 9000 auditing, and continuous improvement and project management.
• Double N, Inc., in Lawrence: $162,050 to train 233 workers in Lean Manufacturing principles, sales and marketing strategic planning, advanced project and time management and software.
• Dynamics Research Corp., in Andover: $45,000 to provide training for 15 workers in service-oriented architecture and Web services.
• Northern Massachusetts Telephone Workers Community Credit Union, in Lowell: $39,866 to train 111 workers in sales, customer service and leadership and management.

EDITOR'S NOTE:  David Mackley, director of the Department for Workforce Development, did not return a request for comment for this story.  EthnicNEWz.org will post updates about the WTF grants for ABE and ESOL as they become available to NEWz. 

source: EthnicNewz.org

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