Since last spring, when Gov. Dannel P. Malloy announced a new state program
designed to promote job creation by providing incentives to employers that hire
unemployed jobseekers, 2,000 Connecticut residents have found work through the
Subsidized Training & Employment Program (STEP UP). A total of 575 employers
have taken advantage of STEP UP as a way to recruit solid talent and build
their businesses.
The CT Workforce Development Council (CWDC), the Association of
Connecticut’s five Workforce Investment Boards, implements the program with
funding provided through the Connecticut Department of Labor.
“We are very pleased that 82% of the employees placed are still employed by
the company or at another job,” said William P. Villano, president and chief
executive officer of Workforce Alliance. “At least 53% of the hires were
long-termed unemployed, who had been searching for work for six months or
more.”
STEP UP provides two types of hiring incentives — a scaled, six month wage
subsidy and a small manufacturer training grant that provides up to $12,500
over a six-month period.
The company must employ less than 100 people and conduct on-the-job
training. Qualified participants are typically residents who may have some of
the necessary job qualifications, but who still require on-the-job training to
meet the needs of the company.
Those hired under the wage subsidy program must meet certain income
requirements and reside in specific municipalities, based on population or
unemployment rates. In addition, additional resources were allocated to STEP UP
to include veterans.
STEP UP-supported positions include customer service representatives,
machine operators, office assistants, carpenters, mechanics, equipment
installers, shipping and receiving, fabricators, dispatch managers, tool
grinders, help desk technicians and process engineers, with hourly wages from
$14.54 up to $28.85.
For more information, call Tom Long at 203-610-8528.