WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a $250,000 grant to the city of Newton, Iowa, to conduct early planning for assisting workers affected by the closing of a Whirlpool Corp. plant located there. The grant will assist affected workers by measuring the effectiveness of utilizing Regional Innovation Grants to help areas impacted by mass layoffs or closures develop strategic plans.

“This demonstration grant will help the city of Newton prepare innovative approaches to assisting workers affected by the closure of Whirlpool,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment and Training Emily Stover DeRocco. “This effort also will assist the Department of Labor in assessing the effectiveness of these new Regional Innovation Grants as a means to better prepare areas facing economic shocks.”

Regional Innovation Grants are intended to assist state workforce agencies and local workforce investment boards, and their key partners, in the design and development of comprehensive and strategic regional plans that focus on talent development to transform regional economies. This approach will utilize sustainable, integrated planning to shorten or eliminate the time from worker dislocation to reemployment and, ultimately, prepare workers for high-skill, high-wage opportunities.

This grant will help Newton create new strategies and realign existing ones to establish economic recovery throughout the affected region. Specifically, it will enable the city to conduct resource mapping to inventory key regional resources and undertake a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats analysis to help identify successful economic and talent development strategies.

The grant was awarded using Dislocated Worker Demonstration funds. For more information on Department of Labor employment and training programs, please visit www.doleta.gov.