A new employer-driven workforce development program created last year by the Legislature is seeking requests for grants to support training by employers.
The Strategic Training Alliance Program was established last year as part of the J2K program championed by Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno and Democratic Assemblyman Robin Schimminger (D-Erie). The Business Council strongly supported the program.
All training grants must be matched by support from the employer or employer group seeking support, said Margarita Mayo, The Councils specialist in education and workforce development. All proposals will also undergo a cost-benefit analysis, she added.
The state agencies administering the program, the Empire State Development
(ESD) and the Department of Labor, are seeking to fund programs that will
have a multiplier effect and that will help industries that
might otherwise close or leave New York State, Mayo said.
Obtaining a grant is a negotiated process with the agencies in charge, which
will draw upon both strategic training alliance funds and federal workforce
investment funds.
Eligible applicants include individual employers, employers collaborating with associations of employers with common concerns, and employers collaborating with a labor union. Associations or chambers of commerce may not apply directly, but their members may apply.
Local Workforce Investment Boards may also apply on behalf of strategic training alliances. Training providers can not apply directly.