ETA News Release: [Dec. 2, 2004]
Contact Name: Lorette Post or Public Affairs
Phone Number: 202-693-3984 or 202-693-4676
U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao Announces $1 Million Grant to Train Houston Workers for Aerospace Careers
Grant Is Part of a Nearly $3 Million Aerospace Industry Initiative
WASHINGTON -- U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao today announced a $1 million grant to train workers in Houston for careers in the aerospace industry. The grant, awarded to the Houston-Galveston Area Council, is part of a nearly $3 million aerospace industry workers training effort under the President's High Growth Job Training Initiative, a strategic plan to prepare workers for jobs in America's fastest growing and economically vital industries.
"Aerospace industry growth and retirements over the next decade will create opportunities for workers who have the needed skills to succeed," said Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao. "The President's High Growth Job Training Initiative will provide Texans with the highly technical skills they need to excel in the Aerospace industry and compete in the worldwide economy."
With the grant, the Gulf Coast Workforce Board and its partners will prepare current aerospace workers for jobs with higher skill responsibilities and place unemployed workers in targeted, high- demand occupations. Training will be delivered in person and on-line. A customized process for developing curriculum will be used in advanced manufacturing and information technology, including design and data development, collection and use.
Key partners in this project include the Gulf Coast Workforce Board and area One-Stop Career Centers, San Jacinto College, the Aerospace Academy, and 23 Houston-area aerospace employers, including NASA Johnson Space Center.
"We have listened to aerospace employers and industry representatives to identify the key challenges they face, including an aging workforce and loss of technical talent," said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment and Training Emily Stover DeRocco. "This grant represents our commitment to solutions that address those challenges so that workers are fully prepared for new employment opportunities and employers are fully equipped for new business opportunities of the 21st century."
Through the President's High Growth Job Training Initiative, the Department of Labor has been conducting executive forums with leaders of expanding industries to identify critical workforce gaps. Solutions, like those found in today's grant, are then created in cooperation with employers, educational institutions and the public workforce system. For more information, please visit http://www.doleta.gov/BRG/JobTrainInitiative/.
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