US Department of Labor announces $300,000 grant to Action for Boston Community Development Inc. to support women in nontraditional occupations

WASHINGTON ‒ Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis announced awards of $1.8 million in grants to consortia in six states through the Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations program.  Among the grantees is Action for Boston Community Development Inc. in Boston, Mass., which will receive $300,000.

“Apprenticeship programs are effective pipelines into growing industries. But too often, these programs are not as accessible to women. The federal grants announced today will better connect women with apprenticeships, helping them to gain skills in fields that offer long-term career opportunities,” said Secretary Solis. 

The grants will support innovative projects that improve the recruitment, hiring, training, employment and retention of women in apprenticeships in industries such as advanced manufacturing, transportation and construction. Within these industries, the grants will fund activities focused on three occupational areas: existing occupations expected to experience primarily an increase in employment demand, existing occupations with significant changes to work and worker requirements, and new and emerging green occupations.

The six grantees are community-based organizations, each of which has formed a consortium with a local Workforce Investment Area and at least one Registered Apprenticeship program sponsor. This consortium-based approach is intended to ensure that women served by WANTO grants have access to a range of supportive services and training, as well as to specific nontraditional employment opportunities.

Each grantee will be required to place at least 50 participants annually and at least 100 participants over the life of the two-year grant into a Registered Apprenticeship program. 

The grants are jointly administered by the Labor Department’s Women’s Bureau and its Employment and Training Administration’s Office of Apprenticeship. For information about the department’s range of employment and training programs, visit http://www.doleta.gov.

Women in Apprenticeship and Nontraditional Occupations Grants

Grantee City    State   Funding Amount 
Action for Boston Community Development Inc.    Boston  Mass.   $300,000       
Chicago Women in Trades Chicago Ill.    $300,000       
Goodwill of North Georgia  Inc. Atlanta Ga.     $300,000       
Oregon Tradeswomen Inc. Portland        Ore.    $300,000       
West Virginia Women Work        Morgantown      W.Va.   $300,000       
Women In Non Traditional Employment Roles       Los Angeles     Calif.  $300,000       
Total   $1,800,000     

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U.S. Department of Labor news materials are accessible at http://www.dol.gov. The information above is available in large print, Braille or CD from the COAST office upon request by calling 202-693-7828 or TTY 202-693-7755.