Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb visited a Lippert Components factory Thursday morning to highlight his recently announced $24 million “Next Level Jobs” initiative aimed at addressing the jobs skills gap across Indiana.
This story by Benjamin Horvath originally appeared in the Elkhart Truth.
Lippert Components CEO Jason Lippert introduced Holcomb and discussed the worker shortage in Elkhart County, which he said he hopes Holcomb’s plan will address.
Lippert said there is currently a 35,000-worker shortage in Elkhart County, with that number expected to climb to 45,000 in the next year.
Holcomb echoed Lippert’s message, stating that the growth of businesses across the state has created a problem of its own.
Holcomb’s Next Level Jobs Initiative sets aside roughly $24 million to fund two programs – the “Workforce Ready Grant” and the “Employer Training Grant.”
Those grants target five key business sectors: advanced manufacturing, IT and business services, building and construction, health and life sciences and transportation and logistics.
Costing about $14 million, the Workforce Ready Grant enables individuals to enroll tuition-free into career focused programs at Vincennes University or Ivy Tech Community College.
The Employer Training Grant, totaling about $10 million, reimburses companies up to $2,500 for training employees within those high demand business sectors.
Holcomb said the initiative’s two-pronged approach attacks the issue from separate ends – the individual and the business.
